Summary: | Background: Gastric cancer, one of the leading causes of cancer-related death, is strongly associated with <i>H. pylori</i> infection, although other risk factors have been identified. The sirtuin (Sirt) family is involved in the tumorigenesis of gastric cancer, and sirtuins can have pro- or anti-tumorigenic effects. Methods: After determining the overall survival rate of gastric cancer patients with or without Sirt6 expression, the effect of Sirt6 upregulation was also tested using a xenograft mouse model. The regulation of Sirt6 and Sirt1, leading to the induction of mouse double minute 2 homolog (MDM2) and reactive oxygen species (ROS), was mainly analyzed using Western blotting and immunofluorescence staining, and gastric cancer cell (SNU-638) death associated with these proteins was measured using flow cytometric analysis. Results: Sirt6 overexpression led to Sirt1 suppression in gastric cancer cells, resulting in a higher level of gastric cancer cell death in vitro and a reduced tumor volume. ROS and MDM2 expression levels were upregulated by Sirt6 overexpression and/or Sirt1 suppression according to Western blot analysis. The upregulated ROS ultimately led to gastric cancer cell death as determined via Western blot and flow cytometric analysis. Conclusion: We found that the upregulation of Sirt6 suppressed Sirt1, and Sirt6- and Sirt1-induced gastric cancer cell death was mediated by ROS production. These findings highlight the potential of Sirt6 and Sirt1 as therapeutic targets for treating gastric cancer.
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