The spliceosome, the large RNA‑protein molecular complex, is crucial for pre‑mRNA splicing. Several
antitumor drugs have been found to tightly bind to the components of the spliceosome and mutations in the spliceosome have been reported in several types of
cancer. However, the involvement of the spliceosome in pancreatic
adenocarcinoma remains unclear. In the present study,
small nuclear ribonucleoprotein associated
polypeptide N (
SNRPN), a key constituent of spliceosomes, was disrupted in BxPC‑3 pancreatic
adenocarcinoma cells using lentivirus‑mediated RNA interference (RNAi). It was found that knockdown of
SNRPN reduced the proliferation ability of BxPC‑3 cells, as determined by an MTT assay. Furthermore, cell colony formation was impaired in
SNRPN depleted
adenocarcinoma cells and cell cycle analysis showed that depletion of
SNRPN led to S phase cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. These results suggest that
SNRPN is a key player in pancreatic
adenocarcinoma cell growth, and targeted loss of
SNRPN may be a potential therapeutic method for
pancreatic cancer.