Abstract: Objective To explore the effect of transforming growth factor α (TGFα) on the expression of cyclin E and D1 in gastric carcinoma cells. Methods Human gastric adenocarcinoma SGC7901 cells were cultured routinely and synchronized at G0/G1 phase in serum-free RPMI-1640. The percentage of the cells at G0/G1 phase was detected by propidium iodide staining and flow cytometry (FCM), and the synchronized cells were cultured in RPMI-1640 supplemented with 2.5% calf serum and treated with 10, 30, and 50 μg/L TGFα for 5 h. The expression of cyclin E and D1 in SGC7901 cells was detected by immunofluorescent staining and FCM. Results The percentage of the cells at G0/G1 phase increased from 54% in routine culture to 72% in the serum-free RPMI-1640 culture. TGFα treatment of the cells synchronized at G0/G1 phase induced significant increment of cyclin E and D1 expressions (P<0.001), and at the dose of TGFα of 50 μg/L, their expressions increased by 25.18% and 27.52%, respectively (P<0.001). Conclusion TGFα can increase the expression of cyclin E and D1 in gastric carcinoma cells to promote their cell cycle progress.