Flotillin-1 promotes tumor necrosis factor-α receptor signaling and activation of NF-κB in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The flotillin family of proteins, including flotillin-1 (FLOT1 or Reggie-2), are lipid raft proteins that initiate receptor kinase signaling and are up-regulated in several tumor types. We investigated the role of FLOT1 signaling and activation of the transcription factor nuclear factor (NF)-κB in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) cells.

METHODS: We used immunoblot and immunochemical analyses to determine levels of the lipid raft-associated protein FLOT1 in ESCC cell lines and 432 ESSC samples from patients; primary normal esophageal epithelial cells and matched adjacent nontumor tissues were used as controls. We determined the ability of FLOT1 to activate NF-κB using kinase, electrophoretic mobility shift, and luciferase reporter assays. We measured the effects of FLOT1 overexpression and knockdown with short hairpin RNAs in ESCC cell lines using colony formation, anchorage-independent growth, chicken chorioallantoic membrane, transwell matrix penetration, and Annexin V-binding assays. We analyzed growth of ESCC xenograft tumors in nude mice.

RESULTS: Levels of FLOT1 were increased in ESCC cell lines and samples from patients, compared with controls; protein levels correlated with disease stage and survival time. Overexpression of FLOT1 in Kyse30 and Kyse510 ESCC cell lines increased proliferation, anchorage-independent growth, and invasive activity and protected them from apoptosis. FLOT1-transduced ESCC cells formed larger tumors in nude mice than control cells (transduced with only the vector). FLOT1 facilitated recruitment of the tumor necrosis factor-α receptor to lipid rafts; promoted K63-linked polyubiquitination of the signaling intermediaries tumor necrosis factor receptor associated factor 2, receptor interacting protein, and NEMO; and sustained the activation of NF-κB. Levels of FLOT1 correlated with activation of NF-κB in ESCC samples from patients.

CONCLUSIONS: The lipid raft protein FLOT1 is up-regulated in ESCC cell lines and samples from patients and promotes ESCC cell proliferation and tumor growth in mice. FLOT1 activates tumor necrosis factor-α receptor signaling and sustains activation of NF-κB in ESCC cells.