Objectives: Obesity, a risk factor for pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC), is often accompanied by a systemic increase in lipopolysaccharide (LPS; metabolic endotoxemia), which is thought to mediate obesity-associated inflammation. However, the direct effects of LPS on PDAC cells are poorly understood.
Methods: The expression of toll-like receptor 4, the receptor for LPS, was confirmed in PDAC cell lines. AsPC-1 and PANC-1 cells were exposed to LPS, and differential gene expression was determined by RNA sequencing. The activation of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt)/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway by LPS in PDAC cells was assessed by Western blotting.
Results: The expression of toll-like receptor 4 was confirmed in all PDAC cell lines. The exposure to LPS led to differential expression of 3083 genes (426 ≥5-fold) in AsPC-1 and 2584 genes (339 ≥5-fold) in PANC-1. A top canonical pathway affected by LPS in both cell lines was PI3K/Akt/mTOR. Western blotting confirmed activation of this pathway as measured by phosphorylation of the ribosomal protein S6 and Akt.
Conclusions: The exposure of PDAC cells to LPS led to differential gene expression. A top canonical pathway was PI3K/Akt/mTOR, a known oncogenic driver. Our findings provided evidence that LPS can directly induce differential gene expression in PDAC cells.
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