In the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) assay, PGC overexpression upregulated the epithelial marker (E-cadherin) and downregulated mesenchymal markers (N-cadherin, vimentin, fibronectin), metalloproteinases (MMP2 and MMP9), and associated transcription factors (Snail, Slug, and Twist) (Figure 1L–N), suggesting PGC was involved in EMT of GC cells. Here, MMP2 is linked to gastric cancer.