ELK1 suppresses SYTL1 expression by recruiting HDAC2 in bladder cancer progression

ETS transcription factor (ELK1) stimulates the expression of genes at the onset of the cell cycle and participates in early developmental programming. Here, we investigated whether alterations of ELK1 lead to progression of bladder cancer (BCa), a main neoplasm of urinary tract, and clarified the function of ELK1 in BCa. Using the GEO database, we identified ELK1 as the most significantly overexpressed gene in BCa, which was substantiated in the acquired clinical samples and cells. Silencing of ELK1 inhibited the malignant phenotype of BCa cells. Further analysis revealed that ELK1 synergized with histone deacetylase 2 (HDAC2) to specifically bind to the synaptotagmin like 1 (SYTL1) promoter, thereby repressing SYTL1 transcription and protein expression. Depletion of SYTL1 reversed the repressive effects of ELK1 depletion on the malignant phenotype of BCa cells. Our in vitro findings were reproduced in vivo on a nude mouse tumorigenic model. Together, our results reveal that ELK1, through suppression of SYTL1 via HDAC2, supports the malignant phenotype of BCa cells.