Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a type of primary liver cancer, which is associated with high mortality. HCC is one of the most common malignant tumors worldwide. Cell division cycle 20 (CDC20) has been reported to be associated with the development of various malignant tumors and epithelial‑mesenchymal transition (EMT) has been reported to be involved in the malignant metastasis of HCC. Therefore, the present study hypothesized that CDC20 may participate in the malignant biological behavior of HCC via EMT. The present study analyzed the expression levels of CDC20 in HCC and the association between CDC20 and poor prognosis. Furthermore, the effects of CDC20 on the proliferation, invasion and migration of HCC cells were examined using proliferation, migration and invasion assays. Finally, alterations in EMT were analyzed. The results revealed that CDC20 was highly expressed in HCC and HCC cell lines (P<0.05), and its high expression level was significantly associated with poor prognosis in patients with HCC (P<0.05). CDC20 silencing inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of HCC cells. Furthermore, CDC20 silencing increased the expression levels of E‑cadherin, and decreased the expression levels of N‑cadherin, vimentin and Ki‑67. In conclusion, the present study reported that CDC20 may be a novel therapeutic target in HCC and CDC20 could promote the progression of HCC by regulating EMT.