PSA-PSMA profiles and their impact on sera PSA levels and angiogenic activity in hyperplasia and human prostate cancer

Aim

The relevance of prostate specific antigen (PSA)-prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA) profiles in pathologic prostate (hyperplasia and cancer) has not been fully understood. The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of PSA-PSMA profiles on sera PSA levels and angiogenic activity in benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) and prostate carcinoma (PC).

Patients and methods

The study has been carried out in 6 normal prostate (NP), 29 BPH and 33 PC with dominant Gleason grade > 8. Immunohistochemical analysis has been performed. Monoclonal antibodies 3E6 and ER-PR8 have been used to assess PSMA and PSA expression respectively. The evaluation of angiogenesis has been made by CD34 immune marker. Serum levels of PSA have been assayed by Immulite autoanalyser.

Results

The study of each protein separately among sera PSA levels showed that PSMA expression and angiogenic activity have the highest intensity in PC patients with serum PSA levels > 20 ng/mL. Nevertheless, the lowest tissue PSA expression was found in PC patients with this latter sera PSA group. The most relevant results showed that in PC patients (PSA+, PSMA+) and (PSA–, PSMA+) profile were found to be inversely related to sera PSA levels. In PC patients, a high immunoexpression of (PSA+, PSMA+) profile has detected in the sera PSA group > 20 ng/mL; whereas a high immunoexpression of (PSA–, PSMA+) profile was detected in the sera PSA group between 0 and 4 ng/mL. The highest angiogenic activity was found in PC patients with (PSA+, PSMA+) profile.

Conclusions

Our findings clearly have supported the feasibility of PSA-PSMA profiles to improve in vivo diagnostic and therapeutic approaches in prostate cancer patients.