['Our previous work showed that epithelial membrane protein 1 (EMP1) is highly expressed in nucleus pulposus of the human degenerative intervertebral disc. The present study was designed to investigate the role of EMP1 in nucleus pulposus cells in intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD).', 'Human nucleus pulposus cells derived from degenerative intervertebral discs were cultured. EMP1 expression was knocked down by lentivirus-mediated specific interfering RNA. Cell morphology was observed, and cell proliferation, apoptosis, and cycle were evaluated.', 'Knockdown of EMP1 inhibited cell proliferation, caused cells to shrink, and accelerated the apoptosis induced by serum deprivation or addition of cycloheximide but did not evoke apoptosis in normal culture conditions.'] Does knockdown Epithelial Membrane Protein 1 suppress Human Degenerative Intervertebral Disc-Derived Nucleus Pulposus Cell Proliferation?