乳腺癌组织中EGF和ALDH1A1的表达及其临床意义

目的 研究表皮生长因子(EGF)与乙醛脱氢酶(ALDH1A1)在正常乳腺组织及乳腺癌组织中的表达及意义,探讨EGF在乳腺癌干细胞演进过程中的作用.方法 采用RT-PCR和免疫组化方法分别检测24例正常乳腺组织和45例乳腺浸润性导管癌组织中EGF和ALDH1A1的表达情况.结果 RT-PCR结果显示,乳腺癌中EGF与ALDH1A1的mRNA水平高表达,在正常乳腺组织中低表达或不表达,两组比较P＜0.01.免疫组化结果显示,EGF在正常乳腺与乳腺癌中的表达分别为20.8％和75.6％,ALDH1A1在正常乳腺与乳腺癌中的表达分别为16.7％与66.4％,乳腺癌中EGF与ALDH1A1蛋白水平表达明显高于正常组织(P＜0.01).EGF与ALDH1A1两者在乳腺癌中表达存在正相关(P＜0.05).EGF的表达与发病年龄、肿瘤大小、组织学分型、有无淋巴结转移、PR表达无相关性,与ER表达呈正相关(P＜0.01)；ALDH1A1的表达与发病年龄、肿瘤大小、有无淋巴结转移、ER、PR表达无相关性,与组织学分型呈正相关(P＜0.05).结论 EGF与ALDH1A1在乳腺癌组织中的表达高于正常乳腺组织,EGF与乳腺癌干细胞的发生发展关系密切.

Expression and significance of EGF and ALDH1A1 in breast cancer

Objective To examine the expression and significance of EGF and ALDH1A1 in the benign and malignant lesions of human mammary gland,and to investigate the role of EGF on breast cancer stem cell progression.Method RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry methods were used to detect the expression levels of EGF and ALDH1A1 in the following two groups: 24 normal breast tissues and 45 breast cancer tissues.Results RT-PCR results showed that mRNA levels of EGF and ALDH1A1 were higher in breast cancer than those in normal tissues(P<0.01).The positive rate of EGF protein in normal breast tissues and breast cancer tissues was 20.8% and 75.6%,and the positive rate of ALDH1A1 protein was 16.7% and 66.4% respectively.The positive rates of EGF and ALDH1A1 expression in breast cancer and normal tissues had a significant difference(P<0.01).In breast cancer,the expression of EGF protein was positively correlated to that of ALDH1A1 protein(P<0.05).The expression of EGF protein was significantly associated with the expression of ER(P<0.01),but was not significantly correlated to the age of onset,tumor size,pathological grade,lymphatic metastasis and PR.The expression of ALDH1A1 protein was significantly associated with the expression of pathological grade(P<0.05),but was not significantly correlated to the age of onset,tumor size,lymphatic metastasis,ER and PR.Conclusions The expression of EGF and ALDH1A1 are lower in normal breast tissues than in breast cancer tissues.EGF may play an important role in the pathogenesis and development of breast cancer stem cell.