TFAP2B overexpression contributes to tumor growth and a poor prognosis of human lung adenocarcinoma through modulation of ERK and VEGF/PEDF signaling
Authors: Wei Guo
Dingbo Shi
Wangbing Chen
Tiebang Kang
Ke Shi
Wuguo Deng
Shusen Wang
Jingshu Wang
Yun Tian
Lingyi Fu
Wenlin Huang
Wendan Yu
Xiangsheng Xiao
Journal: Molecular Cancer (2014)
Discipline: MOLECULAR BIOLOGY & GENETICS
Keywords: TFAP2B; lung adenocarcinomas; NSCLC; cell growth; apoptosis
Affiliations: State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Colaborative Innovation Center of Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, 651 Dongfeng East Road, Guangzhou 510060, China. .

Abstract:  Background: TFAP2B is a member of the AP2 transcription factor family, which orchestrates a variety of cell processes. However, the roles of TFAP2B in regulating carcinogenesis remain largely unknown. Here, we investigated the regulatory effects of TFAP2B on lung adenocarcinomas growth and identified the underlying mechanisms of actions in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. Methods: We first examined the expression of TFAP2B in lung cancer cell lines and tumor tissues. We also analyzed the prognostic predicting value of TFAP2B in lung adenocarcinomas. Then we investigated the molecular mechanisms by which TFAP2B knockdown or overexpression regulated lung cancer cell growth, angiogenesis and apoptosis, and further confirmed the role of TFAP2B in tumor growth in a lung cancer xenograft mouse model. Results: TFAP2B was highly expressed in NSCLC cell lines and tumor tissues. Strong TFAP2B expression showed a positive correlation with the poor prognoses of patients with lung adenocarcinomas (P &lt; 0.001). TFAP2B knockdown by siRNA significantly inhibited cell growth and induced apoptosis in NSCLC cells in vitro and in a lung cancer subcutaneous xenograft model, whereas TFAP2B overexpression promoted cell growth. The observed regulation of cell growth was accompanied by the TFAP2B-mediated modulation of the ERK/p38, caspase/cytochrome-c and VEGF/PEDF-dependent signaling pathways in NSCLC cells. Conclusions: These results indicate that TFAP2B plays a critical role in regulating lung adenocarcinomas growth and could serve as a promising therapeutic target for lung cancer treatment. 

Retracted: No

PubPeer comments:
 According to Definition 9, $mu^+in [0, 1]$ and $ u^-in [-1, 0]$, it is clear that $$frac{1+mu^+ + u^-}{2} =0  text{when} mu^+=0,  u^-=-1$$ $$frac{mu^+ - u^-}{2} =0  text{when} mu^+=0,  u^-=0$$ This means that **the score function in Definition 10 and the accuracy function in Definition 11 are not well defined**, respectively, for the above cases, because the mapping $Delta:[1,t]to Stimes [-0.5, 0.5)$ according Definition 7. Besides, **the operation $tilde{b}_1otimes tilde{b}_2$ in Definition 13 is not well defined** because $$ u_1^-+ u_2^- - u_1^- u_2^- =-3  text {when}  u_1^-= u_2^-=-1$$ Can the authors kindly address these issues? ![file] ![file] ![file] , 
 This paper was retracted in 2019 according to the notice of retraction (DOI:10.3233 JIFS-179528) from IOS Press. The notice reads u201cThe above article originally published in the Journal of Intelligent Fuzzy Systems volume 33, number 2, 2017, pp. 1197u20131207 has been retracted in consultation between the Editor-in-Chief and the publisher of the Journal of Intelligent Fuzzy Systems. Upon inspection it was found that the peer review process for this paper has been manipulated in order to receive a favorable review outcome. In this light the journal cannot condone publication of this paper and has decided to retract it from its online catalogue.u201d , 
 A part of the reference list is attached. ![file] ![file] , 
  [Decision on handling misconduct cases investigated and handled in 2021 (second batch)](http: www.nsfc.gov.cn publish portal0 tab434 info81402.htm) [Google Translate] ------------------------------------------------------- The Supervisory Committee of the National Natural Science Foundation of China organized investigations into suspected academic misconduct in Wei Guiwu (in Chongqing University of Arts and Sciences, Sichuan Normal University), Lu Mao (Sichuan Normal University), etc. The papers involved are as follows: - Paper 1:  Mao Lu, Guiwu Wei*, Fuad E. Alsaadi, Tasawar Hayat and Ahmed Alsaedi. Hesitant pythagorean fuzzy hamacher aggregation operators and their application to multiple attribute decision making. Journal of Intelligent Fuzzy Systems, 2017, 33(2) :1105-1117.u201d (marked with fund numbers 71571128, 61174149) - Paper 2:  Guiwu Wei*, Fuad E. Alsaadi, Tasawar Hayat and Ahmed Alsaedi. Hesitant bipolar fuzzy aggregation operators in multiple attribute decision making. Journal of Intelligent Fuzzy Systems, 2017, 33(2):1119-1128. - Paper 3:  Guiwu Wei*, Mao Lu, Fuad E. Alsaadi, Tasawar Hayat and Ahmed Alsaedi. Pythagorean 2-tuple linguistic aggregation operators in multiple attribute decision making. Journal of Intelligent Fuzzy Systems, 2017, 33(2):1129 -1142.u201d (marked with fund numbers 71571128, 61174149) - Paper 4:  Mao Lu, Guiwu Wei*, Fuad E. Alsaadi, Tasawar Hayat and Ahmed Alsaedi. **Bipolar 2-tuple linguistic aggregation operators in multiple attribute decision making**. Journal of Intelligent Fuzzy Systems, 2017, 33(2):1197 -1207.u201d (marked with fund numbers 71571128, 61174149) - Paper 5:  Guiwu Wei* and Mao Lu. Pythagorean Hesitant Fuzzy Hamacher Aggregation Operators in Multiple-Attribute Decision Making. Journal of Intelligent Systems, 2019, 28(5):759-776. (marked with fund numbers 71571128, 61174149) - Paper 6:  Guiwu Wei*, Mao Lu, Xiyue Tang and Yu Wei. Pythagorean hesitant fuzzy Hamacher aggregation operators and their application to multiple attribute decision making. International Journal of Intelligent Systems, 2018, 33(6):1197-1233. (Marked with fund numbers 71571128, 61174149) After investigation, the papers 1, 2, 3, and 4 published by Wei Guiwu as the correspondent first and corresponding author were withdrawn by the magazine due to the problem of manipulating peer review. Wei Guiwu stated that he did not publish the above four papers, but received scientific research awards and included these four papers in his 2015 National Natural Science Foundation Project (approval number 71571128) progress report. In addition, the papers 5 and 6 published by Wei Guiwu as the first and corresponding author still have repeated publications; the papers 1 and 4 published by Lu Mao as the first author were retracted by the magazine due to the issue of manipulating peer review. Lu Mao said He has not published the above two papers, but has also received scientific research awards. ,