SKA1 promotes malignant phenotype and progression of glioma via multiple signaling pathways

Background Spindle and kinetochore associated protein 1 (SKA1) is a protein involved in chromosome congression and mitosis. It has been found to be upregulated and oncogenic in several human cancers. Herein, we investigated the precise role of SKA1 in the progression and malignant phenotype of human glioma. Methods Bioinformatic analysis was carried out based on the RNA-seq data and corresponding clinical data from GEO, TCGA and CGGA databases. Western blot was performed to analyze the expression of SKA1 in clinical samples and signaling pathway proteins in glioma cells, respectively. CCK8 assay, colony forming assay and EdU assay were performed to assess the cell viability. Cell migration and invasion assays were also performed. Moreover, xenograft model was established and the expression of SKA1 was assessed in the xenograft by immunohistochemistry. Results SKA1 expression is positively correlated with glioma grade and could be a promising biomarker for GBM. Moreover, overexpression of SKA1 may lead to poor prognosis in glioma. Downregulation of SKA1 attenuated cell viability, migration, and invasion in U251, U87, LN229 and T98 cells. Furthermore, GSEA analysis demonstrated that SKA1 was involved in the cell cycle, EMT pathway as well as Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, which were then confirmed with Western blot analysis. Conclusion SKA1 promotes malignant phenotype and progression of glioma via multiple pathways, including cell cycle, EMT, Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. Therefore, SKA1 could be a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of human gliomas.