EP300 as an oncogene correlates with poor prognosis in esophageal squamous carcinoma

E1A Binding Protein P300 (EP300) is one of the mutations of genes involved in histone modifications in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). However, its clinical relevance, potential function and mechanisms have remained elusive. Methods: Genomic sequencing datas from 325 esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) cases were integrated and screened a series of frequently mutated histone modifier genes. EP300 was selected to further analyze its clinical significance, function and RNA-sequencing was performed to explore its potential mechanism. Results: Of 35 histone modifier genes, EP300 was not only a significantly mutated gene but also a frequently mutated gene with a mutation frequency of more than 10% in ESCC. EP300 mutation was associated with tumor grade, pathological T stage and lymph node metastasis, predicting a shorter cumulative survival status. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that EP300 expression was significantly higher in ESCC tumor tissues, and the expression levels were associated with poor survival of ESCC patients. Moreover, we found that EP300 knockdown led to inhibition of cell proliferation, colony formation, migration and invasion. RNA-sequencing showed EP300 knockdown led to a significant change of genes expression associated with angiogenesis, hypoxia and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Conclusions: Taken together, our study identified a novel role and mechanism of EP300 in ESCC and provided epigenetic therapeutic strategies for the treatment of ESCC.