StAR Related Lipid Transfer Domain Containing Protein 8 (STARD8)

DLC3 expression was low or absent in most human breast, ovarian, liver, and prostate cancer cell lines examined. Analysis of a cancer profiling array showed downregulation of DLC3 mRNA in kidney, lung, ovarian, uterine, and breast cancers compared with matched normal tissues, and RT-PCR showed lower DLC3 expression in 60% of primary prostate carcinomas relative to normal prostate tissue. Overexpression of DLC3-alpha in human breast and prostate cancer cell lines inhibited cell proliferation, colony formation, and growth in soft agar.The deduced 1,023-amino acid protein shares 40% identity with rat p122 RhoGAP (DLC1). Northern blot analysis detected moderate expression in heart, placenta, lung, liver, skeletal muscle, kidney, pancreas, spleen, prostate, testis, ovary, small intestine, and colon.