LAUSR

BACKGROUNDS Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most predominant type of kidney neoplasms. One of the major inducers of RCC is the uncontrolled inflammation responses, which promotes the development, progression and metastasis of RCC. Thus, we studied the role of interleukin 36 receptor antagonist (IL-36RN), one cytokine with anti-inflammation effects, on RCC. METHODS The mRNA and protein levels of IL-36RN were determined by quantitative PCR and ELISA (Enzyme-linked immunoassay) respectively in 386 samples of RCC and the corresponding adjacent normal tissues. Tissue microarray was applied to validate their expression pattern. The association of IL-36RN with the survival rate of RCC patients was then assessed. RESULTS The expression level of IL-36RN decreased in RCC tissues when comparing to their corresponding adjacent normal tissues. The down-regulated levels of IL-36RN were correlated with the RCC development, progression and invasion. Furthermore, it was found as an independent prognostic factor for the survival of RCC patients. IL-36RN overexpression inhibited the proliferation, migration, invasion, and colony formation in RCC cells via suppressing β-catenin. In the xenograft mouse model, delivering recombinant IL-36RN inhibited tumor formation in vivo. CONCLUSION We demonstrated here that IL-36RN could suppress the development of RCC, which might be developed as a novel independent prognostic factor and therapeutic target.