P67 | EMERGING ROLE OF NUCLEAR PHOSPHOLIPASE C BETA 1 AS POTENTIAL BIOMARKER IN LUNG CANCER

S. Salucci¹, I. Versari¹, S. Burattini², D. Montecchio³, I. Faenza¹ | ¹Department of Biomedical and NeuroMotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy; ²Department of Biomolecular Sciences, University of Urbino Carlo Bo, Urbino, Italy; ³Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy

Lung Cancer (LC) is the most common neoplasm in both females and males, representing the 11.6% of all new cancer cases and accounting for the 18.4% of all cancer-related deaths. In spite of innovative approaches in LC treatment, the prognosis remains poor, due to late-stage diagnosis, resistance to therapies and metastases¹. Hence, there is a compelling need to identify new biomarkers for the early diagnosis, prognosis and targeted therapy. Recently, the potential role of Phospholipase C (PLC) enzymes in tumor proliferation and metastasis has been proposed². Our study examined the involvement of PLCs in three LC cellular models: A549, H460 and H358. First, mRNA expression of all PLC isoforms was estimated by real-time qPCR, and protein levels were observed for the most promising enzymes. PLCβ1 displayed favorable results, therefore its expression was evaluated through immunohistochemistry on a commercial tissue microarray. Notably, the array revealed a consistent nuclear overexpression of the enzyme in tumoral tissue of patients. In addition, PLCβ1 was found to be localized in the nucleus through confocal laser scanner microscopy. Finally, we transfected H358 cells with a novel construct for omomyc peptide³, whose induction was able to reduce PLCβ1 expression. In this experimental model we observed changes in cell cycle, viability and migration, suggesting the implication of PLCβ1 in cellular mechanisms supporting cancer. These findings demonstrate the involvement of PLC enzymes, particularly of PLCβ1, in LC, suggesting their emerging role as potential biomarkers.