WNT1-inducible signaling pathway protein-1 contributes to tumor progression and treatment failure in oral squamous cell carcinoma

WNT1-inducible-signaling pathway protein-1 (WISP-1) belongs to the family of cysteine rich 61/connective tissue growth factor/nephroblastoma overexpressed matricellular proteins, which are involved in various biological processes, including cell adhesion, proliferation, differentiation, angiogenesis and carcinogenesis. In the present study, the expression of WISP-1 was investigated, and its association with clinicopathological factors and prognosis in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) was evaluated. Additionally, the role of WISP-1 in invasion and apoptosis of human OSCC cells was evaluated. Immunoreactivity of WISP-1 was increased in OSCC tissue compared with adjacent normal tissue samples. High expression of WISP-1 protein was observed in 24/84 (28.57%) OSCC specimens. Additionally, high WISP-1 expression was significantly associated with treatment failure (P=0.042). The 5-year overall survival rate was 33% in patients with high WISP1 expression, and 66% in patients with low WISP-1 expression. WISP-1 expression in the human OSCC SCC-1483 cell line was observed. Furthermore, WISP-1 knockdown using small interfering (si)RNA significantly reduced cell invasion and induced apoptosis compared with control siRNA-transfected cells. These findings suggested that WISP-1 is associated with tumor progression and poor prognosis by increasing tumor cell invasion and inhibiting cell apoptosis in human OSCC.