Correlation of chromosome 17 aberrations and p53 gene mutations with p53 protein expression in oral squamous cell carcinomas

Abstract

<h3>Objectives</h3> Cytogenetic numerical changes in chromosome 17 might be associated with an up-regulation of p53 gene, and could contribute to critical events in carcinogenesis. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible correlations between chromosome 17 numerical aberrations, P53 expression and histological grading in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). <h3>Methods</h3> This study included 40 patients with a primary OSCC. Sections were prepared for p53 immunohistochemistry and FISH technique evaluation. <h3>Results</h3> All cases showed a positive nuclear staining with different indices for the p53 protein with a statistically significant difference between all histological types of OSCC. Well differentiated OSCC showed the highest P53 protein expression than poorly differentiated ones. Spearman correlation test revealed a statistical significant positive correlation between chromosome 17 abnormalities and p53 gene mutations as well as with the immunohistochemical expression of p53 proteins. <h3>Conclusion</h3> From the results of this study, it can be concluded that numerical aberrations of chromosome 17 and p53 gene mutations as well as expression of p53 protein have enormous influence on various cellular processes including differentiation and carcinogenesis. Such knowledge provides novel approaches to therapeutic manipulation of the p53 pathway in the treatment of cancer, especially OSCC.