TIPE2 Inhibits Hypoxia-Induced Wnt/β-Catenin Pathway Activation and EMT in Glioma Cells

Hypoxia-induced epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) could facilitate tumor progression. TIPE2, the tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha)-induced protein 8-like 2 (also known as TNFAIP8L2), is a member of the TNF-alpha-induced protein 8 (TNFAIP8, IWE) family and has been involved in the development and progression of several tumors. However, the effects of TIPE2 on the EMT process in glioma cells and the underlying mechanisms of these effects have not been previously reported. In our study, we assessed the roles of TIPE2 in the EMT process in glioma cells in response to hypoxia. Our results indicated that TIPE2 expression was significantly decreased in human glioma cell lines. TIPE2 overexpression significantly inhibited hypoxia-induced migration and invasion, as well as suppressed the EMT process in glioma cells. Furthermore, TIPE2 overexpression prevented hypoxia-induced expression of beta-catenin, cyclin D1, and c-myc in human glioma cells. In summary, these data suggest that TIPE2 overexpression inhibited hypoxia-induced Wnt/beta-catenin pathway activation and EMT in glioma cells.