Overexpression of GOLPH3 is associated with poor survival in non-small-cell lung cancer

Abstract

As a highly conserved protein of the Golgi apparatus, Golgi phosphoprotein 3 (GOLPH3) has been shown to be involved in tumorigenesis. This study aims to explore the expression and significance of GOLPH3 in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We found that GOLPH3 expression was significantly elevated in NSCLC tissues when compared with adjacent lung tissues (p<0.01). Moreover, GOLPH3 expression was significantly associated with histological type (p<0.01), differentiation (p<0.01), and lymph node metastasis (p<0.05). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that overall survival of patients with high expression of GOLPH3 was significantly shorter (n=100, p<0.05). In addition, GOLPH3 knock-down in two independent NSCLC cell lines inhibited cell viability through the induction of cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. In conclusion, GOLPH3 is closely related to the progression in NSCLC and could be served as a potential prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target for NSCLC.