PDCD2L overexpression represents an unfavorable prognostic marker and its inhibition shows promising therapeutic potential for gastric cancer.

BackgroundGastric cancer is the 4th most common and 3rd deadliest cancer worldwide. Research has shown that PDCD2-like (PDCD2L) is elevated in several tumors.ObjectiveTo explore the relationship between PDCD2L expression and gastric cancer prognosis and its function in gastric cancer.MethodsImmunohistochemical staining and immunoblotting were performed to examine the expression of PDCD2L. The effect of PDCD2L on gastric cancer cells were evaluated by a series of in vitro cellular function experiments and in vivo proliferation experiments.ResultsPDCD2L was found to be overexpressed in gastric cancer tissues compared to non-tumor tissues, and its higher levels were associated with worse prognosis. In vitro experiments showed that reducing PDCD2L expression in gastric cancer cells led to decreased proliferation, migration, and invasion, with a similar effect observed in animal models. Knockdown of PDCD2L also resulted in lower expression of cell cycle- and motility-related proteins, while upregulation of PDCD2L had the opposite effect. Additionally, NGS analysis revealed that PDCD2L knockdown reduced the expression of RFX1, a gene linked to cell proliferation and migration, suggesting that PDCD2L and RFX1 together promote cancer progression.ConclusionPDCD2L could serve as a biomarker for gastric cancer prognosis and a potential therapeutic target.