FOXD1 Promotes Dedifferentiation and Vemurafenib-resistance in Melanoma by Regulating the Expression of CTGF

Metastatic melanoma is the most aggressive skin cancer and associated with a poor prognosis. Targeted therapy is one of the most important treatments for patients with BRAFV600E-mutated advanced melanoma. However, the development of resistance to this treatment compromises its therapeutic success. Increasing evidence has indicated that NC-associated genes play important roles in tumor progress and drug resistance. Our previous study showed that FOXD1 is a neural crest (NC)-associated gene that has high expression levels both in NC cells and melanoma and that it could regulate melanoma migration and invasion. Here, we found that the FOXD1-CTGF axis is important for melanoma resistance. The connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) was identified as a direct downstream factor of FOXD1 using microarray assay. In detail, when we compared the microarray data from FOXD1 OE and control groups, we found that the expression level of CTGF was also higher in FOXD1 OE cells (FC=1.97). total RNA isolated from FOXD1 silenced cell lines and its control cell lines, FOXD1 overepressed cell lines and its control cell lines.