LOXL1 Enhances the Migration and Invasion of Glioblastoma Cells and Predicts Prognosis of Glioblastoma Patients

Abstract

Background: Glioblastoma (GBM) is a primary brain tumor. Lysyl oxidase-like 1 (LOXL1) has been confirmed to promote multiple tumor progression, but its function in GBM remains largely unknown. Therefore, we aimed to study the effects of LOXL1 on the biological behavior of GBM. Methods: The GBM-related data was obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas (CGGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases. Survival analysis, gene set enrichment analysis, wound healing assay and transwell assay were performed. All statistical analyses were done using R v3.5.2. Clinical samples were collected from Zibo Central Hospital and real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR), Western Blot and immunohistochemistry were conducted to verify LOXL1 expression in HA1800, U-87 and U-118 MG cell lines. The migration ability of tumor cells was determined by wound healing assay and Transwell assay. Results: Significantly higher LOXL1 expression was observed in GBM samples. According to the databases, GBM patients with higher LOXL1 expression had a worse prognosis. Among GBM patients with high and low LOXL1 expression (p < 0.05), the janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK/STAT) pathway were significantly differentially enriched, along with 25 other pathways. LOXL1 overexpression significantly promoted GBM cell migration and invasion (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Overexpression of LOXL1 enhances the migration and invasion of GBM cells, promoting the malignant progression of the disease. High expression of LOXL1 predicts a poor prognosis in GBM patients.