PANC-1 cell line as an experimental model for characterizing PIVKA-II production, distribution, and molecular mechanisms leading to protein release in PDAC

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) represents a highly aggressive malignancy with a lack of reliable diagnostic biomarkers. Protein induced by vitamin K absence (PIVKA-II) is a protein increased in various cancers (particularly in hepatocellular carcinoma), and it has recently exhibited superior diagnostic performance in PDAC detection compared to other biomarkers. The aim of our research was to identify an in vitro model to study PIVKA-II production, distribution, and release in PDAC. We examined the presence of PIVKA-II protein in a panel of stabilized pancreatic cancer cell lines by Western blot analysis and indirect immunofluorescence (IFA). After quantitative evaluation of PIVKA-II in PaCa 44, H-Paf II, Capan-1, and PANC-1, we adopted the latter as a reference model. Subsequently, we analyzed the effect of glucose addiction on PIVKA-II production in a PANC-1 cell line in vitro; PIVKA-II production seems to be directly related to an increase in glucose concentration in the culture medium. Finally, we evaluated if PIVKA-II released in the presence of increasing doses of glucose is concomitant with the expression of two well-acknowledged epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers (Vimentin and Snail). According to our experimental model, we can speculate that PIVKA-II release by PANC-1 cells is glucose-dependent and occurs jointly with EMT activation.