UDP-GlcNAc 2-epimerase/ManNAc kinase (GNE) is an inducer of apoptotic processes in Capan-1 pancreatic carcinoma cells: GNE silencing

Early invasive growth and metastasis are features of pancreatic cancer that rely on resistance to anoikis, an apoptosis program activated upon loss of adequate matrix anchorage. Re-expression of the tumor suppressor p16 reversed anoikis resistance of pancreatic cancer cells. This conversion to an anoikis-susceptible phenotype was found to be associated with a striking loss of GNE mRNA expression, prompting us to address the role of GNE in pancreatic cancer in more detail. GNE catalyzes a rate-limiting key step of the sialic acid biosynthesis and may have additional functions in the nucleus. Pancreatic cancer cells Capan-1. Three GNE-silencing samples and three control samples.