Abstract
The aim of the present study was to investigate the expression and clinicopathological features of matrix metalloproteinase 17 (MMP17; also known as MT4-MMP) and MMP25 (also known as MT6-MMP) in gastric cancer. Immunohistochemistry and reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction were used to detect the expression of MMP17 and MMP25 in 42 cases of gastric carcinoma and normal tissues, and 40 cases of atrophic gastritis. The expression of MMP17 in the normal gastric and atrophic gastritis tissues was significantly lower than that in the gastric cancer tissues (P<0.05). The expression of MMP25 in the gastric cancer and atrophic gastritis tissues was markedly higher compared with the normal gastric tissues (P<0.05). The expression of MMP17 and MMP25 was significantly associated with the depth of tumor invasion, lymph node metastasis and serous membrane involvement (P<0.05), but not with patient age and gender, or lesion length, site and histological grade (P>0.05). Therefore, this indicates that the expression of MMP17 and MMP25 is increased with the degree of progress of gastric carcinoma. The detection of MMP17 and MMP25 expression may have clinical value in predicting the prognosis of patients with gastric cancer.
Highlights
After lung cancer, gastric cancer is the second most common cause of cancer‐associated mortalities worldwide [1]
The present study investigated the expression and clinicopathological features of glycosyl‐phosphatidyl inositol (GPI)‐membrane type (MT)‐matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in gastric cancer
In addition to the cancer cells, matrix metalloproteinase 17 (MMP17)‐positive staining was observed in nearby cancer stromal cells, which suggested that stromal cells have an important role in the process of tumor invasion and metastasis
Summary
Gastric cancer is the second most common cause of cancer‐associated mortalities worldwide [1]. Despite an overall decline in the incidence of gastric cancer, the disease remains prevalent in Asian countries [1,2]. The majority of patients with gastric cancer are diagnosed with late‐stage disease, which unlike the curable early stages, has limited therapeutic strategies [3]. Tumor cells must complete a multi‐step progression, which includes detachment, local invasion and motility. Throughout these stages, causative molecules, including matrix degradation enzymes, can be used as prognostic factors [6]. The overexpression of MMPs can promote tumor cell detachment and metastasis, which have been associated with malignancy and a poor clinical outcome for patients [7,8]. There are 26 known MMPs, which share a number of common structural and functional similarities, but differ in their substrate specificity [9]
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