To assess the impact of HOXB7 on growth of hepatoma cells, we knocked down HOXB7 in SMMC-7721 cells using an shRNA specific to HOXB7 (HOXB7 shRNA#2) and overexpressed HOXB7 in HepG2 cells (Fig. 2b). This evidence concerns the gene HOXB7 and hepatocellular carcinoma.