DNM1L, a key prognostic predictor for gastric adenocarcinoma, is involved in cell proliferation, invasion, and apoptosis.

Dynamin-1-like protein (DNM1L) encodes a member of the dynamin superfamily of GTPases. It mediates mitochondrial and peroxisomal division and is involved in the regulation of apoptosis. However, its role in gastric cancer remains unclear. MKN-45 gastric cancer cells were transfected with short hairpin RNA (shRNA) to suppress DNM1L expression. MTT, flow cytometry, and Transwell assays were used to detect the changes in cell proliferation, apoptosis, and invasion, respectively. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect DNM1L expression in gastric adenocarcinoma specimens, and the association of DNM1L expression with clinicopathological features and prognosis was analyzed. After the suppression of endogenous DNM1L expression in MKN-45 cells with shRNA, cell proliferation and invasion rates were significantly reduced, whereas apoptosis was significantly increased (all P<0.01). The expression of DNM1L was significantly higher in gastric adenocarcinoma specimens compared with that in pericarcinoma tissues (P<0.001). The expression of DNM1L increased with increasing infiltration depth, lymphatic metastasis, and higher tumor node metastasis stage (P<0.05). The expression of DNM1L associated negatively with prognosis (P<0.01). DNM1L plays a critical role in the proliferation, invasion and apoptosis of human gastric adenocarcinoma. DNM1L expression has prognostic significance for the survival of patients with gastric adenocarcinoma.