ArticleMolecular cancer2014
Maternal embryonic leucine zipper kinase enhances gastric cancer progression via the FAK/Paxillin pathway.
Article in Molecular cancer, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 60 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
60 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 85 citations in OpenAlex.
- Genome-wide screen identifies a novel prognostic signature for breast cancer survival.Oncotarget · 2017Pooled it
- Maternal Embryonic Leucine Zipper Kinase (Biology · 2026Review
- The role of MELK in cancer: mechanisms and therapeutic options.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Review
- MiR-485-3p/MELK cascade mediates tumor progression in pancreatic cancer.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Molecular mechanisms of metastatic peritoneal dissemination in gastric adenocarcinoma.Cancer metastasis reviews · 2025Review
- MELK as a Mediator of Stemness and Metastasis in Aggressive Subtypes of Breast Cancer.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Targeting MELK in tumor cells and tumor microenvironment: from function and mechanism to therapeutic application.Clinical & translational oncology : official publication of the Federation of Spanish Oncology Societies and of the National Cancer Institute of Mexico · 2025Review
- Melk facilitates pulmonary artery smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration in pulmonary hypertension via modulation of YAP/TAZ signaling.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2025Article
- Upregulation of MELK promotes chemoresistance and induces macrophage M2 polarization via CSF-1/JAK2/STAT3 pathway in gastric cancer.Cancer cell international · 2024Article
- TRIM28 Regulates Proliferation of Gastric Cancer Cells Partly Through SRF/IDO1 Axis.Journal of Cancer · 2024Article
- Single-cell transcriptomics implicates the FEZ1-DKK1 axis in the regulation of corneal epithelial cell proliferation and senescence.Cell proliferation · 2023Article
- Arctigenin hinders the invasion and metastasis of cervical cancer cells via the FAK/paxillin pathway.Heliyon · 2023Article
- AURKA, TOP2A and MELK are the key genes identified by WGCNA for the pathogenesis of lung adenocarcinoma.Oncology letters · 2023Article
- The Role of Paxillin Aberrant Expression in Cancer and Its Potential as a Target for Cancer Therapy.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
- Identification of Differentially Methylated Genes Associated with Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma and Their Prognostic Values.Journal of environmental and public health · 2023Article
- Rho-associated kinase1 promotes laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma tumorigenesis and progression via the FAK signaling pathway.Discover oncology · 2022Article
- MELK predicts poor prognosis and promotes metastasis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma via activating the NF‑κB pathway.International journal of oncology · 2022Article
- Molecular Mechanisms and Potential Rationale of Immunotherapy in Peritoneal Metastasis of Advanced Gastric Cancer.Biomedicines · 2022Review
- Maternal embryonic leucine zipper kinase serves as a potential prognostic marker and leads to sorafenib chemoresistance modified by miR-142-5p in hepatocellular carcinoma.Molecular biology reports · 2022Article
- Targeting Apoptosis in Cancer.Current oncology reports · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundElevated MELK expression is featured in multiple tumors and correlated with tumorigenesis and tumor development. This study is aimed to investigate the mechanisms of MELK-mediated development of gastric cancer.
methodsMELK expression levels in human gastric cancer were determined by quantitative-PCR and immunohistochemistry. The effect of MELK on cell activity was explored by knockdown and overexpression experiments. Cell growth was measured using the CCK-8 assay. Apoptosis and cell cycle distributions were analyzed by flow cytometry. Migration and invasion were tested using a transwell migration assay. Cytoskeletal changes were analyzed by immunofluorescence. To explore the molecular mechanism and effect of MELK on migration and invasion, Western blotting was used to analyze the FAK/Paxillin pathway and pull down assays for the activity of small Rho GTPases. In vivo tumorigenicity and peritoneal metastasis experiments were performed by tumor cell engraftment into nude mice.
resultsMELK mRNA and protein expression were both elevated in human gastric cancer, and this was associated with chemoresistance to 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). Knockdown of MELK significantly suppressed cell proliferation, migration and invasion of gastric cancer both in vitro and in vivo, decreased the percentages of cells in the G1/G0 phase and increased those in the G2/M and S phases. Moreover, knockdown of MELK decreased the amount of actin stress fibers and inhibited RhoA activity. Finally, knockdown of MELK decreased the phosphorylation of the FAK and paxillin, and prevented gastrin-stimulated FAK/paxillin phosphorylation. By contrast, MELK overexpression had the opposite effect.
conclusionsMELK promotes cell migration and invasion via the FAK/Paxillin pathway, and plays an important role in the occurrence and development of gastric cancer. MELK may be a potential target for treatment against gastric cancer.
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