Overexpression of Tiam1 promotes the progression of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma

T-lymphoma invasion and metastasis-inducing factor 1 (Tiam1) has been reported in various types of human cancer, which play important roles in facilitating the metastasis of malignant tumor. However, the investigation of Tiam1 in laryngeal squamous-cell carcinoma is extremely rare. The aim of the present study was to assess Tiam1 expression and examine its function in tumorigenesis and the metastasis of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) in vitro. Tiam1 expression in 98 primary LSCC tissue specimens was analyzed by immunohistochemistry and correlated with clinicopathological parameters and patients' survival. To investigate the effects of Tiam1 on the progression of LSCC, Tiam1/C1199 plasmid was transfected into LSCC, and proliferation, apoptosis, migration and invasion of transfected cells were examined using MTT, flow cytometry, wound-healing and Transwell assay, respectively. The results showed that, Tiam1 was detected in all primary LSCC samples. Additionally, Tiam1 overexpression was closely correlated with tumor progression and patient survival. Tiam1 overexpression was statistically significant, and served as an independent predictor of prognosis for patients with LSCC. The upregulation of Tiam1 by Tiam1/C1199 plasmid had no effect on the proliferation of transfected cells, but decreased the apoptotic rate of transfected cells, while the ability of migration and invasion was increased. These results suggested that Tiam1 overexpression in LSCC is possibly involved in the promotion of migration and invasion, and is a promising therapeutic target in the prevention of the progression of LSCC.