Objective To detect the effect of Rap2a, a member of the small GTPase superfamily, on the invasion and metastasis of lung cancer cells and related mechanism.
Methods The reconstructed plasmid pcDNA3.1-Rap2a was transfected into H1299 and A549 cells. The ability of invasion was evaluated by wound healing assay and Transwell test. The proliferation and apoptosis of the cells were measured by CCK-8 assay and flow cytometry. Meanwhile, the protein levels of Bcl-2, Bax, ERK and Akt were detected by Western blot.
Results The ectopic expression of Rap2a promoted cancer cell invasion and migration, compared with the control group. However, no significant change in the proliferation and apoptosis of cancer cells were found in Rap2a-transfected cells, moreover, there was no detectable difference in Bcl-2 and Bax protein expression. Western blot analyses revealed that Rap2a overexpression significantly increased the phosphorylation level of AKT.
Conclusion Rap2a promotes the cells migration and invasion, which might be via the regulation of AKT pathway in lung cancer cells.
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