The exosome-mediated PI3k/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway in cervical cancer

Background: Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer and one of the leading causes of cancer deaths among women worldwide. Objective: To evaluate the clinical significance of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway in cancer tissues and exosomes extracted from vaginal secretions. Methods: Immunohistochemical staining was used to detect the protein expression of PI3k, Akt, and mTOR in tissue samples from the control group, the CIN (cervical intraepithelial neoplasia) group, and the cervical cancer group. qPCR (quantitative PCR) was used to detect the expressions of PI3k, Akt, and mTOR in cervical cancer tissues, the corresponding adjacent tissues, and exosomes extracted from vaginal secretions. Results: Compared with those of healthy people and CIN, the PI3k/ Akt/mTOR protein levels in extracts from tissues were higher in the cervical cancer patients. The PI3k/Akt/mTOR gene and protein levels increased in the cervical cancer tissues with the increase in the degree of malignancy of the cancer. There was no significant difference in PI3k/Akt/mTOR gene expression between the cervical cancer tissues and the exosomes extracted from vaginal secretions, but both were significantly higher than the expressions of the corresponding adjacent tissues. Conclusions: The PI3k/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway mediated by exosomes extracted from vaginal secretions may provide candidate diagnostic biomarkers or potential therapeutic targets.