HOXC10 up-regulation promotes gastric cancer cell proliferation and metastasis through MAPK pathway.

As an important regulator of embryonic morphogenesis, homeodomain-containing gene 10 ( A primary gastric cancer mouse model was obtained via intra-gastric wall injection of gastric cancer cells and was used to evaluate the function of HOXC10 during gastric cancer progression HOXC10 expression was significantly increased in gastric cancer tissues compared to matched normal tissues. HOXC10 up-regulation significantly increased tumor volumes in nude mice. Plasmid transfection significantly increased HOXC10 protein and mRNA expressions and effectively promoted cell proliferation. Moreover, HOXC10 up-regulation significantly promoted migration and invasion of gastric cancer cells. Mechanistic investigation showed that HOXC10 up-regulation significantly increased mRNA and protein expression of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling related genes, including This study demonstrated the tight link between HOXC10 and gastric cancer cell proliferation and metastasis via involvement of the MAPK pathway.