Kelch-like protein 14 promotes proliferation and migration of ovarian cancer cells.

Kelch-like protein 14 (KLHL14) belongs to the Kelch gene family, which interacts with TorsinA and is associated with dystonia symptoms. However, the effect of KLHL14 on tumorigenesis remains unclear; thus, we aimed to explore the effects of KLHL14 on ovarian cancer cells. By analyzing information regarding ovarian cancer patients obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA)-Ovarian Cancer Database, we found that the KLHL14 gene is highly expressed in ovarian cancer, and patients with high KLHL14 expression had lower survival than those with low expression. qRT-PCR and western blot results revealed that the mRNA and protein levels of KLHL14 in ovarian cancer cells were higher in A-2780 cells than in KGN cells. After constructing cell lines with a knocked down KLHL14 gene, we used the MTT assay, flow cytometry with propidium iodide (PI), Annexin V-FITC/PI, and transwell assay and found that knockdown of KLHL14 gene inhibited proliferation of A-2780 cells, caused cell G0/G1 phase arrest, promoted apoptosis, and inhibited migration and invasiveness. In addition, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis revealed that KLHL14 may promote development of ovarian cancer by regulating signaling pathways such as mTOR, WNT, and TGF-beta. In short, the KLHL14 gene plays an important role in ovarian cancer development and may be a target for ovarian cancer detection and treatment.