RESUMO
Zinc finger protein SNAI1 (SNAIL) and zinc finger protein SNAI2 (SLUG) transcription factors promote epithelialmesenchymal transition, a process through which epithelial cells acquire a mesenchymal phenotype, increasing their migratory and invasive properties. In prostate cancer (PCa) progression, increased expression levels of SNAIL and SLUG have been described. In advanced PCa, a decrease in the cell surface proteoglycan syndecan1 (SDC1), which has a role in celltoextracellular matrix adhesion, has been observed. Notably, SDC1 nuclear location has been observed in mesenchymal cancers. The present study aimed to determine if SNAIL and SLUG may be associated with the nuclear location of SDC1 in PCa. To determine the location of SDC1, antibodies against its intracellular domain (ID) or extracellular domain (ED) were used in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and PCa samples with high Gleason scores. Only IDSDC1 was located in the cell nuclei in advanced PCa samples, but not in the BPH samples. EDSDC1 was located in the cell membrane and cytoplasm, exhibiting decreased levels in PCa in comparison with those in BPH. Furthermore, LNCaP and PC3 PCa cell lines with ectopic SNAIL expression exhibited nuclear IDSDC1. No change was observed in the EDSDC1 levels, and maintained its location in the cell membrane and cytoplasm. SLUG induced no change in IDSDC1 location. At the protein level, an association between SNAIL and nuclear IDSDC1 was observed. In conclusion, the results of the present study demonstrated that nuclear IDSDC1 localization was associated with SNAIL expression in PCa cell lines.