Inflammatory mediators, tumor necrosis factor-α and interferon-γ, induce EMT in human PTC cell lines

Inflammatory mediators, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interferon (IFN)-γ, promote adverse outcomes in numerous types of cancer; however, their role in papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) remains unclear. The aim of the present study was to investigate the influence of TNF-α and IFN-γ on the migration, invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of the three PTC cell lines, TPC-1, BCPAP and K1. The effect of TNF-α and IFN-γ on cell migration and invasion was assessed by wound-healing and Transwell assays. In addition, the mRNA and protein expression levels of the EMT makers, E-cadherin, N-cadherin and vimentin, were analyzed using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and immunoblot analysis. The wound-healing and Transwell experiments revealed that TNF-α and IFN-γ increased the migratory and invasive behavior of PTC cells (P<0.05). RT-qPCR revealed that TNF-α and IFN-γ downregulated E-cadherin mRNA, while they upregulated N-cadherin and vimentin mRNA expression levels. These results were further confirmed by the immunoblot analysis. The results of the present study suggest that TNF-α and IFN-γ induce EMT and malignant progression in human PTC cells.