Alpha1,3 fucosyltransferase VII plays a role in colorectal carcinoma metastases by promoting the carbohydration of glycoprotein CD24.

Changes in the expression levels of alpha1,3 FucT-VII and carbohydrate product SLe X have been reported in certain types of malignant transformations. However, the specific role of FucT-VII in human colorectal carcinoma is still not clear. We evaluated the expression of FucT-VII in tumor specimens from 30 colorectal carcinoma patients by RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry. The alteration of metastatic potential of LOVO cells before and after alpha1,3 FucT-VII gene transfection was also assayed. The expression change of glycoprotein CD24 and carbohydrate antigen SLe X after stable transfection of LOVO was also examined in vitro. Higher mRNA and protein expression of FucT-VII were observed in colorectal tumors compared with adjacent normal ones. The cell chemotactic migration and invasion were enhanced after alpha1,3 FucT-VII transfection in LOVO cells. There was a positive correlation between alpha1,3 FucT-VII mRNA expression and lymph node status (p=0.009) and AJCC stage (p=0.007), similar correlation was also observed at protein level (p=0.042 and 0.022, respectively). Overexpression of alpha1,3 FucT-VII promoted the expression of CD24 and SLe X in LOVO cells. Our findings suggest that alpha1,3 FucT-VII might play a role in colorectal carcinoma metastases by promoting the carbohydration of glycoprotein CD24.