Abstract: Objective:To observe the effects of infection induced by Fusobacterium nucleatum (F. nucleatum) on the proliferation and infiltration of tongue squamous cell carcinoma cell line Cal-27. Methods:Supernatant from THP-1 cells differentiated macrophages stimulated with F. nucleatum (multiplicity of infection was 100:1) for 24 h was collected, and supernatants from unstimulated THP-1 cells differentiated macrophages and THP-1 cells were collected as controls. Cal-27 cells were co-cultured with the above-mentioned supernatants and Cal-27 cells proliferation was detected by CCK-8 method. Migration of Cal-27 cells were evaluated by scratch assay. Expressions of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin (IL)-6 were detected by ELISA. Results: F. nucleatum-induced macrophages conditioned medium reduced the proliferation but promoted the migration rate of Cal-27 cells in comparison with two control groups (P<0.05). The levels of TNF-α and IL-6 in macrophages stimulated with F. nucleatum were significantly higher than those without any stimulations (P<0.05). Conclusions:Stimulation of macrophages with F. nucleatum promoted TNF-α and IL-6 production, which may promote the migration but inhibit the proliferation of Cal-27 cells.

Key words: Fusobacterium nucleatum, THP-1 cells, Cal-27 cells, migration, proliferation