Background: Carboxypeptidase N (CPN) is highly expressed in breast cancer and plays an important role in cleaving specific polypeptide fragments within the tumor microenvironment, so here we studied the important role of its invasion and migration in breast cancer.
Methods: MDA-MB-231, MDA-MB-468, and MCF-7 cells were selected for cell culture. We used real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and western blotting to determine CPN gene and protein expression. If CPN was obviously expressed, we designed and synthesized a molecular sequence using an RNA interference approach to remove the CPN and observed its proliferation, migration, and invasion within tumor cells.
Results: Real-time PCR and western blotting show the following CPN expression: minimal in MDA-MB-468 cells but obvious in MDA-MB-231 and MCF7 cells. MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell lines were selected for the control group and CPN was knocked out for the experimental group. Compared to the control group, the experimental group had significantly less migration and invasion.
Conclusion: CPN may play an important biological function in breast cancer and will provide a new target for the effective diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer.