AUTHOR=Yang Hao , Hou Hui , Zhao Haiping , Yu Tianwei , Hu Yuchong , Hu Yue , Guo Junmei TITLE=HK2 Is a Crucial Downstream Regulator of miR-148a for the Maintenance of Sphere-Forming Property and Cisplatin Resistance in Cervical Cancer Cells JOURNAL=Frontiers in Oncology VOLUME=11 YEAR=2021 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/oncology/articles/10.3389/fonc.2021.794015 DOI=10.3389/fonc.2021.794015 ISSN=2234-943X ABSTRACT=
The acquisition of cancer stem-like properties is believed to be responsible for cancer metastasis and therapeutic resistance in cervical cancer (CC). CC tissues display a high expression level of hexokinase 2 (HK2), which is critical for the proliferation and migration of CC cells. However, little is known about the functional role of HK2 in the maintenance of cancer stem cell-like ability and cisplatin resistance of CC cells. Here, we showed that the expression of HK2 is significantly elevated in CC tissues, and high HK2 expression correlates with poor prognosis. HK2 overexpression (or knockdown) can promote (or inhibit) the sphere-forming ability and cisplatin resistance in CC cells. In addition, HK2-overexpressing CC cells show enhanced expression of cancer stem cell-associated genes (including