Expressions of Beta-Catenin, SUFU and VEGFR-2 Proteins in MeduUoblastoma

Objective： to investigate the expressions of beta-catenin, SUFU and VEGFR-2 proteins in medulloblastoma. Methods： Immunohistochemical staining with SP method was conducted to determine the expressions of beta-catenin, SUFU and VEGFR-2 in 33 cases of medulloblastoma and 10 normal cerebellar tissues. Results： the abnormal expression rates of beta-catenin and VEGFR-2 in medulloblastoma were significantly higher than that in normal tissue. While the positive expression of SUFU gene in medulloblastoma was significantly lower than that in 10 normal cerebellar tissues, A significant negative correlation was found between beta-catenin and SUFU proteins and a positive correlation between beta-catenin and VEGFR-2 was found in medulloblastoma. Conclusion： Beta-catenin, VEGFR-2 and SUFU have important effects on the pathogenesis and development of medulloblastoma.     

Expressions of Beta-Catenin,SUFU and VEGFR-2 Proteins in Medulloblastoma

Objective:to investigate the expressions of beta-catenin,SUFU and VEGFR-2 proteins in medulloblastoma.Methods:Immunohistochemical staining with SP method was conducted to determine the expressions of beta-catenin,SUFU and VEGFR-2 in 33 cases of medulloblastoma and 10 normal cerebellar tissues.Results:the abnormal expression rates of beta-catenin and VEGFR-2 in medulloblastoma were significantly higher than that in normal tissue.While the positive expression of SUFU gene in medulloblastoma was significantly lower than that in 10 normal cerebellar tissues.A significant negative correlation was found between beta-catenin and SUFU proteins and a positive correlation between beta-catenin and VEGFR-2 was found in medulloblastoma.Conclusion:Beta-catenin,VEGFR-2 and SUFU have important effects on the pathogenesis and development of medulloblastoma.     

Expression of Wnt-1, beta-catenin and c-myc in Ovarian Epithelial Tumor and Its Implication

Objective： To investigate the expression of Wnt-1, beta-catenin and c-myc in normal ovarian epithelial cell and malignant ovarian epithelial tumor. Methods： Immunohistochemical staining with SP method was conducted to identify the expression of Wnt-1, beta-catenin and c-myc in 18 samples of normal epithelial tissue and 34 cases of malignant epithelial tumor of ovary. Results： The expression rate of Wnt-1 and c-myc in malignant epithelial tumors was higher than those in normal epithelial cell （P〈0.05）. The abnormal expression rate of beta-catenin in malignant ovarian epithelial tumors was higher than that in normal epithelial cell （P〈0.05）. A significant positive correlation was found between Wnt-1, beta-catenin and c-myc in malignant ovarian epithelial tumor （P〈0.05）. A significant difference of expressions of Beta-catenin and C-myc was found between serous and mucinous tumors （P〈0.05）. Conclusion： The abnormal expression of Wnt-1, beta-catenin and c-myc might indicate the malignant transformation in ovarian epithelial tumors.     

Expressions of beta-catenin, APC Protein, C-myc and Cyclin D1 in Ovarian Epithelial Tumor and Their Implication

Objective： To investigate the expressions of beta-catenin, protein APC （adenomatous polyposis coil protein）, c-myc and cyclin D1 and their implication in ovarian epithelial tumor. Methods： Immunohistochemical staining with SP method was conducted to identify the expressions of beta-catenin, APC protein, c-myc and cyclin D1 in ovarian epithelial tumor in 48 cases. Results： The abnormal expression rate of beta-catenin in malignant and borderline ovarian epithelial tumors was higher than that in benign epithelial tumors （P〈0.01）. The expression rates of c-myc and cyclin-D1 in ovarian malignant and borderline epithelial tumors were higher than those in benign epithelial tumors too（P〈0.05）. The prevalence of APC protein positive expression in benign epithelial tumors were significantly greater than that in malignant epithelial tumors （P〈0.05）. A significant negative correlation was found between beta-catenin and APC protein in ovarian epithelial tumors; while a significant positive correlation was found between beta-catenin, c-myc and cyclin-D1 in ovarian epithelial tumor （P〈0.05）. Conclusion： The abnormal expressions of Beta-catenin, APC protein, c-myc and cyclin-D1 might be used to indicate the malignance transform of ovarian epithelial tumors.     

Expression of beta-catenin and APC protein in ovarian epithelial tumor and its implication

Objective： To investigate the expression of beta-catenin, APC protein and its implication in ovarian epithelial tumor. Methods： Immunohistochemical staining with SP method was conducted to determine the expression of beta-catenin and APC protein in 48 cases of ovarian epithelial tumor. Results： The abnormal expression rates of beta-catenin in ovarian malignant and borderline epithelial tumors were higher than that in benign epithelial tumors. The expression of APC protein in benign epithelial tumors was significantly greater than that in malignant epithelial tumors. A significant negative correlation was found between beta-catenin and APC protein in ovarian epithelial tumors. Conclusion： Beta-catenin and APC protein have important effect on pathogenesis and development of ovarian epithelial tumors.     

Expresston of the EphA2 Gene in Esophageal Carcinoma Tissues

OBJECTIVE To investigate the relationship of the EphA2 gene with the occurrence, invasion and metastasis of esophageal carcinoma. METHODS The expression of EphA2 mRNA was detected by RT-PCR and the EphA2 protein was estimated by immunohistochemistry （SP method） in both esophageal, cancerous tissues and normal epithelial tissues. RESULTS The expression of EphA2 mRNA showed no difference between esophageal cancerous tissues and normal epithelium, and there appeared to be no correlation with differentiation of the cancerous tissues, the depth of infiltration or lymph node metastasis （P〉0.05）. However, the expression of the EphA2 protein was significantly higher in cancerous tissues compared to normal epithelial tissues （P〈0.05）. The expression of the EphA2 protein in a deeper invasive group and in a group with lymph node metastasis was significantly higher compared to a superficial： ly invasive group and a group without lymph node metastasis （P〈0.05）. Its expression did not appear to be correlated with differentiation of cancerous tissues （P〉0.05）. CONCLUSION The occurrence of esophagus carcinoma and the formation of invasion and metastasis may be related to overexpression of the EphA2 protein but not to the level of mRNA, a finding which may due to up-regulation at the translation level or by increased protein stability.     

肝细胞癌组织中MMP-2的表达与侵袭转移的关系

OBJECTIVE：To investigate the association between MMP-2 expression of hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC） and its invasion and metastasis. METHODS： Semi-quantitative RT-PCR and immunohistochemical analysis technology were used to detect MMP-2 mRNA expression and MMP-2 protein expression respectively in HCC, non-HCC liver tissue samples and normal liver tissue samples. RESULTS： The level of MMP-2 expression in HCC was higher than that in adjacent non-HCC liver tissue and in normal liver tissue and the difference was statistically significant, P〈0.05. and the difference of MMP-2 expression between adjacent non-HCC liver tissue and normal liver tissue had no statistical significance, P〉0. 05. MMP-2 expression in HCC had an inverse correlation with recurrence after surgical treatment, P=0.013, R^2=0.842, and a posi- tive correlation with pathological grade, P = 0. 000, R^2 = 0. 797. There was a positive correlation between MMP-2 expression in HCC and extrahepatie metastasis, P=0. 003, R^ =0. 834. Significant inverse correlation was found between MMP-2 expression in adjacent non-HCC liver tissue and extrahepatie metastasis, P=0. 021, R^2= 0. 877. CONCLUSIONS： MMP-2 has an association with degree of tumor differentiation, capability of invasion and metastasis and tendency of recurrence. MMP-2 way be one of indexes of differentiation, recurrence and metastasis.     

Expression of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor-C and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-3 in Ovarian Epithelial Tumors

Objective： To explore the role of vascular endothelial growth factor-C （VEGF-C） in the process of angiogenesis, lymphangiogenesis and lymphatic metastasis in epithelial ovarian tumors. Methods： In situ hybridization and immunohistochemical staining for VEGF-C were performed in 30 epithelial ovarian carcinomas, 9 borderline tumors and 26 benign tumors. Endothelial cells were immunostained with anti-VEGFR-3 pAb and anti-CD31 mAb, and VEGFR-3 positive vessels and microvessel density （MVD） were assessed by image analysis. Results： VEGF-C mRNA and protein expression were detected in cytoplasm of carcinoma cells. VEGF-C mRNA and protein expression in ovarian epithelial carcinomas were significantly higher than those in borderline tumors and benign tumors （P〈0.05 or P〈0.01）. In ovarian epithelial carcinomas, VEGF-C protein expression, VEGFR-3 positive vessels and MVD were significantly higher in the cases of clinical stage Ⅲ-Ⅳ and with lymph node metastasis than those of clinical stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ and without lymph node metastasis respectively （P〈0.05 or P〈0.01）. VEGFR-3 positive vessels and MVD were significantly higher in VEGF-C protein positive tumors than negative tumors （P〈0.05）. VEGFR-3 positive vessels was significantly correlated with MVD（P〈0.01）. Conclusion： VEGF-C might play a role in lymphatic metastasis via lymphangiogenesis and angiogenesis in epithelial ovarian tumors, and VBEGF-C could be used as a biologic marker of metastasis in ovarian epithelial tumors.     

VEGF-A and VEGFR-3 correlate with nodal status in operable non-small cell lung cancer: inverse correlation between expression in tumor and stromal cells

BACKGROUND: Lymph node metastasis is an essential determinant for stage and clinical management of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGFs) and receptors (VEGFRs) are fundamental molecules in angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis. We aimed to explore the correlations between nodal metastasis and the expression of VEGFs and VEGFRs in tumor cells and in tumor-related stroma. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Tumor tissue samples from 335 resected patients with stage I-IIIA NSCLC were obtained and tissue microarrays were constructed from duplicate cores of tumor cells and surrounding stromal tissue from each resected specimen. Immunohistochemistry was used to evaluate the expression of VEGF-A, VEGF-C, and VEGF-D and VEGFR-1, VEGFR-2 and VEGFR-3. RESULTS: There were 232 N0 and 103 N+ patients (76 N1, 27 N2). In multivariate analyses, low stromal VEGF-A expression (P=0.018) is associated with N+ status. In tumor cells, strong correlations exist between high VEGF-A expression (P=0.032) and N+ status, and high VEGFR-3 expression (P<0.001) and N2-status. CONCLUSION: The converse impact by stromal VEGF-A versus tumor cell VEGF-A expression on nodal metastasis may allude the importance of the tumor-stroma interaction when trying to understand lymphatic metastasis in NSCLC.     

Vascular endothelial growth factor C and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 are related closely to the prognosis of patients with ovarian carcinoma

BACKGROUND: The vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) family and VEGF receptors (VEGFR) play an essential role in the angiogenesis of both pathologic and nonpathologic conditions. However, the prognostic significance of VEGF and VEGFR expression in ovarian carcinoma is unclear. METHODS: The tissue expression levels of VEGF-A, VEGF-C, VEGFR-2, and VEGFR-3 in 80 specimens of ovarian carcinoma were examined immnohistochemically. The results obtained were analyzed clinicopathologically. RESULTS: VEGF-A, VEGF-C, VEGFR-2, and VEGFR-3 were expressed both in tumor cells and in adjacent endothelial cells of blood and lymph vessels. The tissue expressions of VEGF-C and VEGFR-2 were correlated significantly with tumor extension, including peritoneal metastases outside the pelvic cavity (P = 0.0010 and P = 0.0008, respectively), lymph node metastases (P = 0.0030 and P = 0.0018, respectively), and positive ascitic cytology (P = 0.025 and P = 0.0016, respectively). Conversely, there was no significant correlation between VEGF-A and VEGFR-3 expression and clinicopathologic features of ovarian carcinoma. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the expressions of VEGF-C and VEGFR-2 also were independent risk factors for peritoneal and lymph node metastases. Survival curves determined by the Kaplan-Meier method and in univariate analysis demonstrated that high expression levels of VEGF-C and VEGFR-2 were associated with the 5-year survival rate. In multivariate analysis, high expression levels of VEGF-C and VEGFR-2 emerged as independent indicators for disease-specific survival. CONCLUSIONS: High tissue expression of VEGF-C and VEGFR-2 reflects the aggressiveness of the spread of tumor in ovarian carcinoma. Thus, both have predictive value for identifying high-risk patients who have a poor prognosis.     

ErbB2 overexpression correlates with increased expression of vascular endothelial growth factors A,C, and D in human breast carcinoma

BACKGROUND: The angiogenic factor vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A plays an important role in breast cancer progression. However, the involvement of VEGF-C and VEGF-D, two newer members of the VEGF family, in breast carcinoma and their relationship with clinicopathologic parameters have not been clearly demonstrated. METHODS: In this study, the expression levels of VEGF-A, VEGF-C, and VEGF-D protein in 107 breast carcinoma cases and 22 nonmalignant breast tissue samples were examined by immunohistochemistry and quantitated by image analysis. RESULTS: Higher expression of VEGF-C and VEGF-D was found in breast carcinomas than in nonmalignant breast tissue samples. Moreover, expression of VEGF-A, VEGF-C, and VEGF-D was significantly and positively correlated with ErbB2 expression. High levels of VEGF-A expression were associated with shorter disease-free survival (DFS). Patients with tumors expressing high levels of VEGF-C or VEGF-D showed a notable trend for worse DFS, however, it was not statistically significant. The combination of VEGF-A and VEGF-C status predicted survival better than either marker alone. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that expression of the angiogenic and lymphangiogenic factors (i.e., VEGFs) might be regulated at least in part by ErbB2. In addition, the combination of VEGF-A and VEGF-C status may better predict prognosis of patients with breast carcinoma than VEGF-A alone.     

Expression level of vascular endothelial growth factor-C and -A in cultured human oral squamous cell carcinoma correlates respectively with lymphatic metastasis and angiogenesis when transplanted into nude mouse oral cavity

Angiogenesis is induced by various angiogenic factors including vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGFs), such as VEGF-A, -B, -C and -D, and is involved in tumor progression and metastasis. In an effort to define the expression pattern of VEGFs in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and its correlation with clinicopathological factors, we determined the expression levels of VEGFs in OSCC cell lines (HSC-2, HSC-3, HSC-4 and OSC-19) by quantitative RT-PCR and examined their relationship with regional lymph node (LN) and distant metastasis, intratumoral microvessel density (MVD) in tumor transplanted nude mice. We found that HSC-2 and OSC-19 expressed significantly higher levels of VEGF-A and VEGF-C, and caused frequent regional LN metastasis and higher MVD than did the other cell lines. Since VEGF-C is a lymphangiogenic factor, these results suggest that expression of VEGF-C is a useful predictor for LN metastasis.     

Human small cell lung cancer cells express functional VEGF receptors, VEGFR-2 and VEGFR-3

Studies have suggested that the vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGFs)/VEGF receptors (VEGF-Rs) system plays an important role in tumour growth and metastasis. We conducted the present study to clarify whether small cell lung cancer (SCLC) cells express functional VEGF-Rs and VEGFs, and their biological significance in the SCLC progression. We examined expression of VEGF and VEGF-C, and their receptors, VEGFR-2 and VEGFR-3, in five SCLC cell lines, NCI-H82, H209, H510, H526 and H660, by Western blotting. We evaluated whether hypoxic conditions up-regulate these protein expressions. We also examined whether VEGF addition and VEGF-D addition cause phosphorylation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) as well as VEGFR-2 and VEGFR-3. Further, we investigated whether VEGF addition and VEGF-D addition induced the proliferation and migration of the SCLC cells. VEGF, VEGF-C, VEGFR-2 and VEGFR-3 were detectable by Western blotting in all five SCLC cell lines,. The VEGF-Rs and VEGFs expression levels were increased by an incubation under hypoxic conditions in NCI-H82. VEGF addition and VEGF-D addition caused phosphorylation of MAPK as well as the VEGF-Rs themselves, and induced proliferation and migration of the SCLC cells. These results suggested potential of VEGF signal-pathway inhibitors as anti-cancer agents in SCLC treatment disturbing growth and migration of the cancer cells.     

Detection and characterization of vascular endothelial growth factors and their receptors in a series of angiosarcomas

BACKGROUND: Angiosarcomas are malignant mesenchymal neoplasms, including sarcomas of presumptive vascular endothelial origin and sarcomas of probable lymphatic origin. It is, however, often difficult to determine whether they are from blood vascular or lymphatic endothelium. The majority of angiosarcomas are thought to originate from vascular endothelia and spread via bloodstream to lung, but lymphatic metastases can occur. METHODS: We investigated immunohistochemical expression of vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGF-A, VEGF-C) and their receptors (VEGFR-1, VEGFR-2, VEGFR-3) in a series of 34 angiosarcomas. RESULTS: VEGF-A was expressed by 32/34 (94%), VEGF-C by 4/34 (12%), VEGFR-1 by 32/34 (94%), VEGFR-2 by 22/34 (65%), and VEGFR-3 by 27/34 (79%). Patients who expressed low or no VEGFR-2 showed a significantly unfavorable prognosis by log-rank test (P = 0.010) and multivariate analysis (hazard ratio, 5.16; 95% CI, 1.40-19.04; P = 0.014). VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-3 were not significantly associated with patients' prognosis. CONCLUSIONS: VEGF-A and VEGFR-1 were detected in diverse subtypes of angiosarcomas. In cooperation, VEGF-A and VEGF-C are likely to be involved in the development of angiosarcoma associated with lymphedema. VEGF-C expression may cause susceptibility to lymphatic metastasis through tumor lymphangiogenesis. Angiosarcoma of the scalp, which is traditionally considered as a true hemangiosarcoma, may include some cases of lymphatic origin.     

VEGF-C和受体VEGFR-3 mRNA在食管鳞癌中的表达及意义

目的:观察血管内皮生长因子C(VEGF-C)及其受体血管内皮生长因子受体3(VEGFR-3)在食管鳞癌组织中的表达,分析其与肿瘤淋巴结转移的关系.方法:采用RT-PCR方法检测32例食管鳞癌组织、10例正常食管粘膜中VEGF-C/VEGFR-3 mRNA的表达情况,分析其与各临床病理因素之间的关系.结果:食管鳞癌组织中VEGF-CmRNA表达阳性率为68.75%(22/32),其中18例VEGFR-3 mRNA阳性,VEGF-C和VEGFR-3的表达密切相关(P＜0.01).VEGF-C mRNA的表达与食管鳞癌的淋巴结转移、浸润深度显著相关(P＜0.01,P＜0.05),但与患者年龄、肿瘤大小及分化程度无关.正常食管粘膜中未见VEGF-C/VEGFR-3 mRNA表达.结论:VEGF-C/VEGFR-3是促进食管鳞癌经淋巴结转移的重要因素.