Abstract
Latent transforming growth factor-beta-1 binding protein-2 (LTBP-2) is a member of the fibrillin/LTBP super family of extracellular matrix proteins, found to be overexpressed in certain malignant tumors. However, the clinical significance and biological role of LTBP-2 in cervical adenocarcinoma has remains unclear. We found that the expression of LTBP2 was higher in cervical adenocarcinoma than in normal cervical epithelial tissue as assessed by immunohistochemistry. Expression of LTBP2 is related to clinical stage, cervical tumor size, depth of cervical stromal invasion and lymph node metastasis. Knockdown of LTBP2 expression can inhibit the proliferation and migration of HeLa cells. Moreover, LTBP2 knockdown affected multiple tumor-related pathway genes including: the MAPK signaling pathway, the PI3K-AKT signaling pathway, receptor tyrosine kinase signaling and the P53 pathway. Taken together, this work suggests that LTBP2 may promote the development of cervical adenocarcinoma and serve as a prognostic factor in the clinical evaluation of patients with cervical adenocarcinoma. Our findings provide a new strategy for the diagnosis and treatment of cervical adenocarcinoma.