JNK activation can mediate BECN1 expression to induce autophagic cell death in response to chemotherapeutic agents.15 Because we observed that autophagic cell death was involved in the effect of PCDH17 on CRC cell viability, we next detected the protein levels of phosphorylated-JNK (p-JNK) to determine whether the JNK pathway is activated in PCDH17-transfected cells when exposed to 5-FU treatment. This evidence concerns the gene BECN1 and colorectal carcinoma.