Abstract
Chromatin assembly factor 1 subunit B (CHAF1B) participates in DNA synthesis and repair. High CHAF1B expression has been associated with a poor prognosis in several types of cancers. However, no study has evaluated the clinical significance and biological function of CHAF1B in non‑small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In the present study, we aimed to investigate CHAF1B expression and its role in NSCLC. In the present study, it was revealed that CHAF1B was highly expressed in NSCLC lung tissues and 95‑D cells. Kaplan‑Meier survival analysis indicated that high CHAF1B expression in tumour tissue was associated with poor clinical outcomes in NSCLC patients. Multivariate Cox analyses revealed that lymph node metastasis, tumour‑node‑metastasis (TNM) stage and CHAF1B expression were independent prognostic factors in NSCLC patients. Moreover, CHAF1B knockdown in 95‑D cells markedly inhibited tumour proliferation, reduced colony formation, induced cell cycle arrest and promoted apoptosis. In vivo studies demonstrated that CHAF1B knockdown inhibited the growth of transplanted tumours. Furthermore, our results revealed that the mechanism by which CHAF1B induced apoptosis was mediated by the activation of the p53‑dependent apoptotic signalling pathway (BAK/Bcl‑2/caspase‑3) in 95‑D cells. These data indicated that CHAF1B plays an important role in tumourigenesis and may be a therapeutic molecular target to counter NSCLC progression.