Background: Epithelial splicing regulatory
proteins (ESRPs) can regulate alternative splicing of
RNA and play roles in
tumorigenesis and development of various
malignancies. In this study, bioinformatic analyses and immunohistochemistry (IHC) were used to investigate the function of ESPRs in serous ovarian
carcinoma (SOC)
oncogenesis and
metastasis. Materials and Methods: The
mRNA levels of ESRPs were analyzed by Oncomine and gene expression profiling interactive analysis (GEPIA). Prognostic values of ESRPs were analyzed by GEPIA and the UALCAN website. Genetic variations of ESRPs were analyzed by cBioPortal. ESRP1 was selected for further research. The relationship between ESRP1 and immunoregulatory molecules was studied by using the TISIDB database. ESRP1
protein expression in OC was investigated via IHC assays. Results: ESRP1 and ESRP2
mRNA were significantly upregulated in SOC (p < 0.05). The prognostic value of ESRP1
mRNA in SOC was inconsistent, and ESRP2
mRNA level did not relate to prognosis for OC patients. The IHC results showed higher ESRP1 expression in OC tissues than in normal ovarian tissues (p = 0.002), and ESRP1 expression in metastatic lesions of OC patients was higher than in paired primary OC tissues (p = 0.035). The ESRP1 expression was related to FIGO stage, differentiation, and peritoneal
metastasis (p = 0.016; 0.031; 0.038, respectively). The ESRP1 switch (the differential expression of ESRP1 between metastatic and primary
tumor of ovarian
carcinoma) was significantly associated with
E-cadherin expression in metastatic OC
tumors (p = 0.012). The ESRP1 expression in both
metastasis and ESRP1 switch significantly correlated with poor prognosis of OC patients (p = 0.045; 0.038, respectively), and ESRP1 switch and FIGO stage were independent risk factors for OC patient prognosis (p = 0.033; 0.009, respectively). Conclusions: The ESRP1 may promote OC
metastasis by promoting OC cell colonization via the mesenchymal-epithelial transition (MET) process. The ESRP1 expression in metastatic lesions of OC patients may be a
biomarker for predicting prognosis and a potential therapeutic target in OC.