RNA-Seq Analysis Reveals Altered Expression of Cell Adhesion-Related Genes Following PZR Knockout in Lung Cancer Cells.

Protein zero related (PZR) serves as a substrate and anchor protein for SHP-2, the product of the proto-oncogene PTPN11 that is frequently mutated in cancers. The expression level of PZR is elevated in various cancers, which is correlated with an unfavorable prognosis. The role of PZR in lung cancer is not fully studied. To investigate how PZR affects signaling pathways involved in LUAD development, we utilized the CRISPR technology to knock out PZR expression in SPC-A1 lung adenocarcinoma cells and then conducted RNA sequencing to profile the transcriptome. Our results showed that 226 genes exhibited differential expressions in PZR-knockout SPC-A1 cells vs wild-type cells. Many of the genes encode proteins involved in cell adhesion, migration, actin cytoskeleton organization, and regulation of cell shape. Furthermore, our experimental data showed that PZR-knockout SPC-A1 cells displayed faster attachment to tissue culture dishes and slower detachment from the dishes upon EDTA treatment. The data suggest an important role of PZR in cell-matrix interaction and may provide new insights into the signaling events that regulate cancer development.