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Abstract
Furin, a proprotein convertase (PC), is ubiquitously expressed and implicated in many
physiological and pathological processes. This study is aimed to identify the role
of furin in human trophoblast invasion and migration. Furin was found to be highly
expressed in placental villi of both rhesus monkeys and human beings during early
pregnancy. Specifically, furin was found in trophoblast column and trophoblast shell,
regions where highly invasive cytotrophoblast cells invade the maternal decidua during
human placentation. To determine whether furin plays any role in trophoblast invasion
and migration, we employed human extravillous HTR8/SVneo cells in Matrigel invasion
and transwell migration assays. Knocking-down furin expression by siRNA significantly
inhibited invasion and migration of HTR8/SVneo cells (P<0.01), with corresponding
decrease of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) activities. In contrast, over-expression
of furin markedly increased cell invasion and migration (P<0.01), accompanied by significant
increase of MMP-9 activities. Furthermore, furin siRNA significantly increased the
levels of both tissue inhibitors of MMPs (TIMP)-1 and -2. Our results suggest that
furin may play an important role in the invasion and migration of human trophoblast
cells during early pregnancy.