E2F3 accelerates the stemness of colon cancer cells by activating the STAT3 pathway

Sep 24, 2026

Original research investigating how E2F3 regulates colon cancer stemness through the STAT3 pathway. Sphere formation assays assessed self-renewal, while nude mice in vivo experiments measured tumorigenicity. Western blot and IHC evaluated gene and E2F3 expression, and CCK-8 tested cisplatin resistance. Transwell assays quantified migration and invasion after manipulating E2F3 levels. Results show E2F3 upregulation in spheroid cells, promoting stemness, migration, invasion, and modulation of STAT3 signaling, suggesting E2F3 as a potential anticancer biomarker.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages9

Reading Time23 min

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Introduction

Methods

Results

Conclusion

References (as cited)

TYPE Original Research PUBLISHED 29 June 2023 DOI 10.3389/fonc.2023.1203712 OPEN ACCESS EDITED BY Nan-Shan Chang, National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan REVIEWED BY Kenneth K. W. To, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, China Yi-Jia Li, Beckman Research Institute, United States *CORRESPONDENCE Wensheng Huang [hwswwbhyx@sina.com](hwswwbhyx@sina.com) RECEIVED 11 April 2023 ACCEPTED 07 June 2023 PUBLISHED 29 June 2023 CITATION Gao Q, An K, Lv Z, Wang Y, Ding Cand Huang W (2023) E2F3 accelerates the stemness of colon cancer cells by activating the STAT3 pathway. Front. Oncol. 13:1203712 . doi: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1203712 COPYRIGHT © 2023 Gao, An, Lv, Wang, Ding and Huang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. E2F3 accelerates the stemness of colon cancer cells by activating the STAT3 pathway Qingkun Gao, Ke An, Zhe Lv, Yanzhao Wang, Changmin Ding and Wensheng Huang* Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Peking University Shougang Hospital, Beijing, China Introduction: Colon cancer is one of the most prevalent malignancies and causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Thus, further research is required to explicate the latent molecular mechanisms and look for novel biomarkers. E2F3 has been conﬁrmed to be an oncogene in a variety of cancers. However, the particular regulation of E2F3 in colon cancer needs further investigation. Methods: The self-renewal ability was detected through a sphere formation assay. The tumorigenic ability was measured through nude mice in vivo assay. The protein expression of genes was examined through a Western blot. The expression of E2F3 in tumor tissues was detected through an IHC assay. The resistance to cisplatin was assessed through the CCK-8 assay. The cell migration and invasion abilities were measured after upregulating or suppressing E2F3 through the Transwell assay. Results: Results uncovered that E2F3 was upregulated in spheroid cells. In addition, E2F3 facilitates stemness in colon cancer. Moreover, E2F3 facilitated colon cancer cell migration and invasion. Finally, it was revealed that E2F3 affected the STAT3 pathway to modulate stemness in colon cancer. E2F3 served as a promoter regulator in colon cancer, aggravating tumorigenesis and stemness in colon cancer progression through the STAT3 pathway. Conclusion: E2F3 may be a useful biomarker for anticancer treatment in colon cancer. KEYWORDS E2F3, stemness, STAT3 pathway, colon cancer, cancer Frontiers in Oncology 01 [frontiersin.org](frontiersin.org) Introduction Colon cancer is one of the most prevalent tumors and results in cancer-interrelated deaths globally (1, 2) . Early surgical operations obviously ameliorate the 5-year survival rate of colon cancer patients, but most advanced colon cancer patients are found to have metastasis and are not suited for surgery (3, 4) . Unluckily, treatment options with useful effects for advanced colon cancer patients were few (5, 6) . Hence, comprehending the relevant molecular regulatory mechanism of colon cancer progression and looking for accurate and serviceable biomarkers were imperative. More and more factors (lncRNAs, circRNAs, miRNAs, and proteins) as molecular targets have been disclosed to join in the regulation of cancer’s progression, including colon cancer. For example, lncRNA LINC01578 modulates the NF-kB/YY1 axis to strengthen metastasis in colon cancer (7) . CircRNA circCSPP1 combines with miR-431 to regulate ROCK1 and ZEB1, then facilitates the tumorigenesis of colon cancer (8) . HOXD13 enhances PTPRN2 expression

FAQs

What question does the study address about E2F3 in colon cancer?

The study examines how E2F3 regulates colon cancer stemness and tumor progression, specifically through the STAT3 pathway.

How was E2F3-related stemness experimentally evaluated?

Self-renewal was measured using sphere formation assays, and tumorigenic ability was tested in nude mice in vivo.

What evidence links E2F3 to the STAT3 pathway?

After assessing E2F3 expression and cancer phenotypes, the results indicate that E2F3 affects the STAT3 pathway to modulate stemness in colon cancer.

Sep 24, 2026

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