Role and mechanism of eEF1A1 in metastasis of colorectal cancer
WANG Chen
FAN Ahui
GUO Xingxian
MIAO Ge
ZHANG Yuanci
CAO Tianyu
WANG Xin
ZHAO Xiaodi
Abstract：Objective To investigate the expression of eukaryotic elongation factor 1 alpha 1(eEF1A1)in colorectal cancer(CRC)tissues,clarify its regulatory role in CRC cell metastatic capacity,and deeply explore the underlying molecular mechanisms.Methods Public database resources were utilized to analyze eEF1A1 expression patterns in CRC and its association with clinicopathological parameters,clarifying its clinical significance.Molecular biology techniques were employed to establish stable eEF1A1 knockdown and overexpression CRC cell lines.In vitro Transwell assays were conducted to assess eEF1A1's impact on CRC cell metastatic capacity.In vivo,a nude mouse tail vein lung metastasis model was established to observe and quantify the formation of pulmonary metastatic lesions and the number of metastatic nodules in model mice.Protein interaction network construction and functional enrichment analysis were combined to explore molecules interacting with eEF1A1 and potential underlying mechanisms.Results The analysis of the TCGA database indicated that eEF1A1 was remarkedly upregulated in CRC tissues and CRC patients exhibiting high eEF1A1 expression had poorer prognosis.Analysis of the GEO public database revealed that eEF1A1 expression in M1 stage was significantly higher than that in MO stage.Transwell assay indicated that eEF1A1 knockdown significantly inhibited RKO cell metastasis and invasion(P＜0.01),while eEF1A1 overexpression promoted HCT8 cell metastasis and invasion(P＜0.01).The model of pulmonary metastasis of tail vein in nude mice suggested that eEF1A1 overexpression led to significantly increased tumor nodules and metastases,with opposite effects observed after knockdown.The STRING database predicted 10 potential interacting proteins for eEF1A1,primarily comprising ribosomal proteins and translation elongation factors.Reactome analysis indicated that highly enriched translation elongation/initiation/SRP targeting pathways might play crucial roles in eEF1A1-mediated CRC metastasis.Conclusion eEF1A1 is highly expressed in CRC and may promote CRC metastasis by coordinating translation elongation efficiency,initiation regulation,and SRP pathways.This research provides new targets and basis for future targeted therapies.
Keywords：colorectal cancereukaryotic elongation factor 1 alpha 1GTPmetastasisinvasiontranslational regulationprognosismechanism
Publication Date：2026-06-30
Online Publishing Date：2026-08-26(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：7( 799-804,811 )