beta-catenin protein exhibits a dual function in epithelial cells, depending on its intracellular localization. At the plasma membrane, beta-catenin is an important constituent of adherens junctions. However, when the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway is activated, beta-catenin translocates to the nucleus to promote specific gene expression. To investigate the functional activity and examine the role of the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway in various human prostate cancer cells, indirect immunofluorescence was performed to detect the expression and distribution of beta-catenin in the following prostate cancer cell lines: PC-3, LNCaP, C4-2, IA8-ARCaP and IF11-ARCaP. A marked difference was observed in the expression and distribution of beta-catenin in different prostate cancer cell lines. beta-catenin was observed in the nuclei of IA8-ARCaP and IF11-ARCaP cell lines, whereas it was present on the membrane of LNCaP and C4-2 cell lines. There was a low expression of beta-catenin in the PC-3 cell line. Furthermore, short hairpin RNA (shRNA) targeting human beta-catenin was constructed to investigate the effect of beta-catenin shRNA on the proliferation and invasive potency of prostate cancer cells. The IA8/beta-catenin(-) cell line exhibited a reduced potency for invasion and proliferation compared with the IA8 and IA8-shControl groups. The present study demonstrated that suppressing activity of Wnt/beta-catenin signal pathway via beta-catenin shRNA results in an inhibition of prostate cancer proliferation and invasion.