LZTR1 Loss Reduces Vimentin Expression and Motility in Hep3B Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains a leading cause of cancer-related mortality, underscoring the need to elucidate molecular mechanisms that regulate tumor cell state and behavior. Leucine zipper-like post-translational regulator 1 (LZTR1) regulates RAS/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling, yet LZTR1-dependent transcriptional alterations in HCC cells remain poorly defined. To address this gap and determine how LZTR1 loss reshapes signaling, transcriptional programs, and cellular phenotypes, we established a LZTR1 knockout (KO) Hep3B model and combined pathway profiling with transcriptomic and functional analyses. Immunoblotting revealed increased phosphorylation across the RAF-MEK-ERK-RSK cascade in LZTR1 KO cells. Transcriptome-wide RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) identified differentially expressed genes, and selected findings were validated by qRT-PCR. Gene set enrichment analysis indicated that the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) gene set was enriched in control cells. At the protein level, LZTR1 loss remodeled EMT-associated markers in a hybrid epithelial-mesenchymal pattern consistent with epithelial-mesenchymal plasticity (EMP). Vimentin was suppressed at transcript and protein levels. Functionally, LZTR1 KO cells exhibited impaired wound closure and reduced transwell migration and invasion. Collectively, these findings define an EMP-related molecular and phenotypic state associated with LZTR1 deficiency in Hep3B cells, providing insight into how LZTR1 loss reshapes tumor cell behavior in HCC.