Silencing of PINK1 represses cell growth, migration and induces apoptosis of lung cancer cells

PTEN induced putative kinase 1 (PINK1) has been found to be up-regulated, which promotes the proliferation and chemoresistance in lung cancer. Nevertheless, the role and detailed mechnisms of PINK1 in lung cancer have not been fully understood, which need to be further clarified. In this study, the resluts showed that silencing of PINK1 inhibited proliferation and blocked cell cycle of lung cancer cells. Furthermore, the apoptosis rate was enhanced by PINK1 suppression, as evidenced by increased protein levels of Bax, cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), and decreased level of Bcl-2. The migration and invasion abilities were also restrained by PINK1 silencing. Silencing of PINK1 also resulted in oxygen species (ROS) overproduction and decreased mitochondrial membrane potential. Finally, suppression of PINK1 repressed the growth of xenograft tumor and induced apoptosis in tumor tissues in vivo. This study might lead to PINK1 kinase as a novel therapeutic target for lung cancer treatment.