The tumor suppressive role of inhibin βA in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma

Abstract

INHBA (inhibin βA), a subunit of a ligand of the transforming growth factor-β superfamily, is known to play diverse roles in various solid tumors. However, its role in hematologic malignancies remains unexplored. Here, we investigated the function of INHBA in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Both mRNA and protein levels of INHBA were significantly downregulated in primary DLBCL tissues, irrespective of germinal center B-cell-like (GCB) or non-GCB subtype, compared to those in benign tonsils. The low level of INHBA in patients with de novo DLBCL was correlated with reduced overall and progression-free survival. Ectopic expression of INHBA in DLBCL cell lines (OCI-Ly01 and SUDHL-10) resulted in reduced cell proliferation, increased spontaneous apoptosis and arrested cell cycle in vitro and suppressed xenograft tumor growth in vivo. Moreover, INHBA enhanced the chemosensitivity of DLBCL cells. Thus, our results provide novel evidence that INHBA functions as a tumor suppressor in DLBCL.

Keywords:

• Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma
• INHBA
• tumor suppressor

Acknowledegments

The work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [81400098, 81172251, and 81301725], the Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation [LY17H160005], the K.C. Wong Magna Fund in Ningbo University and in part by the Intramural Research Program of the NIAID, NIH, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Potential conflict of interest

Disclosure forms provided by the authors are available with the full text of this article online at https://doi.org/10.1080/10428194.2017.1372574.