Epithelial membrane protein 1 (EMP1), first discovered and named by Taylor V. in 1995. It is also known as CL-20, TMP, B4B and PAP, and together with PMP22, EMP2, EMP3 and PERP form the PMP22/EMP gene family. The protein consists of 157 amino acid residues and is a glycoprotein with four highly conserved hydrophobic transmembrane helices localized on the membrane, chromosomally located at 12pl2.3. It is expressed in the heart, placenta, lung, skeletal muscle, kidney, spleen, thymus, prostate, testis, ovary, small intestine and colon of adults, and its sequence was found to be highly conserved by comparing human, mouse and rabbit genes. The structure and distribution of the gene suggest that EMP1 has similar functions to other members of its family, and because of its conserved structure, these functions are likely to be some of the more basic and important functions for cells. Current studies suggest that the EMP1 gene may be associated with cell adhesion, proliferation, apoptosis, differentiation, tumor formation, metastasis, and resistance formation, and no role of EMP1 in the intervertebral disc has been reported. We detected the expression of EMP1 in the cells by RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry in established human embryonic intervertebral disc nucleus pulposus cells and degenerated disc cells culture system, and found that EMP1 was expressed in both normal and degenerated disc cells with high windage, and combined with its highly conserved structure, we suggest that EMP1 plays an important role in the degeneration process of intervertebral disc cells. important role in the degeneration of disc cells. We showed that EMP1 expression was significantly reduced in laryngeal and esophageal cancers, and high expression of this gene in laryngeal and esophageal cancer cell lines resulted in slowed cell proliferation. High expression of the gene in HEK293 cells led to increased apoptosis. In contrast to the above, expression of the gene was upregulated in brain and gastrointestinal tumors, and high expression of the gene in fibroblasts led to increased cell tumorigenicity. These findings suggest that EMP1 can affect cell proliferation and apoptosis and is closely related to the cellular environment. Could it be that this gene is also involved in intervertebral disc development and disc cell differentiation? RNA interference was used to verify the changes in cell function after high expression of this gene. To investigate the effect of EMP1 on intervertebral disc degeneration, degenerating disc nucleus pulposus cells were cultured in vitro, and the expression of EMP1 in these cells was interfered with to observe cell proliferation, apoptosis, and changes in collagen fiber expression. Understanding the role of EMP1 in disc development, maturation, and degeneration will help us to understand the mechanisms of disc development and degeneration and provide a basis for the prevention and treatment of disc disease. It will also help to understand the function of the EMP/ PMP22 family genes and provide for the elucidation of the mechanisms by which these genetic changes lead to disease, and the treatment of these diseases.