Abstract
BackgroundEvidence indicates that most cases of colorectal carcinoma (CRC) develop from adenoma. A previous study demonstrated that mitochondrial Tu translation elongation factor (TUFM) might serve as an independent prognostic factor for colorectal cancer. However, the expression and function of TUFM in the normal–adenoma–cancer sequence have not been reported. In this study, we investigated the clinicopathologic significance of TUFM and p53 expression for the normal–adenoma–carcinoma sequence in colorectal epithelia and evaluated the roles of TUFM during the progression of colorectal tumors.MethodsParaffin-embedded specimens from 261 colorectal normal mucosa samples, 157 adenomas, and 104 early carcinomas were analyzed for TUFM and p53 expression by immunohistochemistry.ResultsExpression of TUFM and p53 was significantly increased during the colorectal normal–adenoma–carcinoma sequence (all P < 0.05). The expression of TUFM and p53 was associated with histologic type of adenomas (P = 0.028; P = 0.001) and grade of dysplasia (all P = 0.001). Expression of TUFM was positively correlated with that of p53 (r = 0.319, P = 0.001).ConclusionsUpregulated TUFM expression may play an important role in the transformation from colorectal normal mucosa to carcinoma through adenoma. Combined immunohistochemical detection of TUFM and p53 may be useful for evaluating the biological behavior of colorectal adenoma.
Highlights
Evidence indicates that most cases of colorectal carcinoma (CRC) develop from adenoma
Expression of Mitochondrial Tu translation elongation factor (TUFM) protein was found primarily in the membrane and cytoplasm of adenoma or carcinoma cells (Fig. 1). p53 protein expression was not demonstrated in normal mucosa, but nuclear staining was detected in 22.3% (35/157) of adenomas and 60.6% (63/104) of carcinomas
Association of TUFM and p53 expression with clinicopathologic features in colorectal adenoma Upon statistical analysis, a significant difference was found in TUFM expression according to histologic type of adenomas; TUFM showed a trend of more frequent positivity in tubulovillous adenoma (60%) compared with the other three types of adenoma
Summary
Evidence indicates that most cases of colorectal carcinoma (CRC) develop from adenoma. A previous study demonstrated that mitochondrial Tu translation elongation factor (TUFM) might serve as an independent prognostic factor for colorectal cancer. The expression and function of TUFM in the normal–adenoma–cancer sequence have not been reported. Shi et al reported that TUFM was overexpressed in CRC and further demonstrated that it could serve as an independent prognostic factor [16]. The expression and clinicopathologic significance of TUFM in these different stages (normal mucosa, adenoma, and cancer) must be investigated. Such studies have not been carried out
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