Background: Minichromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins 2-7 form a complex essential for the initiation of DNA replication. In the process to screen expression changes related to growth suppression of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells by a cJun dominant-negative mutant, we found that reduced expression of MCM4 was correlated with this growth suppression.
Method: We determined the relevance of MCM4 in proliferation of NSCLC by downregulating its expression with small-interfering RNA in three NSCLC cell lines. We then immunohistochemically analyzed MCM4 expression in 156 surgically resected NSCLCs to correlate clinicopathologic characteristics.
Results: MCM4 downregulation reduced proliferation in two cell lines. MCM4 expression was higher in cancer cells than in adjacent normal bronchial epithelial cells (p < 0.001). High MCM4 expression was correlated with male gender, heavy smoking, poorer differentiation and non-adenocarcinoma histology (p < 0.001, respectively). High MCM4 expression was also correlated with proliferation markers, Ki-67 and cyclin E expression (p < 0.001, respectively). MCM4 expression was not associated with survival.
Conclusion: MCM4 may play an essential role in the proliferation of some NSCLC cells. Taken together with higher expression in NSCLCs and its correlation with clinicopathologic characteristics such as non-adenocarcinoma histology. MCM4 may have potential as a therapeutic target in certain population with NSCLCs. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.