Inhibitory effect of p27KIP1 gene transfer on head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cell lines

Background. Although p27 gene mutations are rarely found in cancer, the level of p27 protein expression decreases during tumor development. In several tumors, including laryngeal cancer, decreased expression of p27 is associated with a poor prognosis. Methods. The proliferation-inhibitory effect of p27 gene transfer on human head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) cell lines (SNU-1041, SNU-1066, and SNU-1076) by adenoviral vector was investigated. Results. On transduction of the human HNSCC cell line with adenovirus-p27 (Ad-p27), a high level of p27 expression and increase of cyclin D1 and E were observed. Cell cycle analysis showed a marked decrease in the proportion of cells in S phase and an increase in G1 phase. Soft agar clonogenic assay showed a marked decrease in clonogenicity. Conclusion. These results suggested that overexpression of p27 could show proliferation-inhibitory effects on HNSCC cell lines. Thus, gene therapy using adenovirus-p27 seemed to have a potential to develop into a new cancer gene therapy modality. (C) 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.