Abstract:Objective To investigate the expression of Vav3 in small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and its effect on cell migration and invasion. Methods Totally 87 cases of SCLC and 50 cases of normal lung tissues were involved. Expressions of Vav3 proteins in lung tissue were measured by immunohistochemistry. Human small cell lung cancer cell line H446 were divided into siRNA-Vav3 group, siRNA-vehicle group and blank group. Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR was utilized to detect Vav3 gene expression. Cellular migration and invasioncapability were determined by scratching assay and Transwell assay, respectively. Results Positive rate of Vav3 protein in SCLC tissues was increased significantly compared with control group (81.6% vs 14.0%, χ2 = 17.739, P = 0.000). Expression of Vav3 was positively correlated with clinical stage, distant metastasis and survival rate (P = 0.024, 0.016, and 0.014,respectively). Average survival time (month) in Vav3 positively expressed group was shortened dramatically when compared with that in Vav3 negatively expressed group (23.14 vs 44.89, χ2 = 6.280, P = 0.012). PCR results suggested that siRNA-Vav3 knocked down Vav3 expression compared with siRNA-vehicle group and blank group (P = 0.000). Cells in siRNA-Vav3 group experienced obviously decreased healing rate and migration capability compared with siRNA-control sequence group and blank group (P = 0.000). Conclusion Silencing of Vav3 inhibits cell migration and invasion ability and is potentially a prognostic biomarker for SCLC.