BMP2, transcriptionally regulated by GATA6, accelerates the proliferation and invasion of lung squamous carcinoma cells

Lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) has a high mortality rate, creating an urgent need to identify novel therapeutic targets. Aberrant expression of bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2) is associated with the progression of several cancers. Previous reports demonstrated that BMP2 is highly expressed in tumor tissues and serum of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the pathological roles and mechanisms of BMP2 in LUSC progression, and the mechanism underlying the overexpression of BMP2 remain to be elucidated. In this study, we found that a high level of BMP2 is correlated with poor prognosis in patients with LUSC, and that BMP2 promotes the growth and metastasis of LUSC cells in vitro and in vivo by activating the MAPK-ERK1/2 signaling pathway. The expression of BMP2 is transcriptionally repressed by the transcription factor GATA6. In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that BMP2 may serve as a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of LUSC.