Expression and prognostic value of aquaporin 1, 3 in cervical carcinoma in women of Uygur ethnicity from Xinjiang, China.

Rui Chen,Lalai Suzuk,Reshalaity Amiduo,Talaf Tuokan,Yonghua Shi,Marcia Edilaine Consolaro

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0098576

Abstract

BackgroundOverexpression of several aquaporins has been reported in different types of human cancer but the role of aquaporins in carcinogenesis has not yet been clearly defined. There is few report concerning role of aquaporins in human cervical carcinogenesis so far. Here, we determined the expression and prognostic value of aquaporin 1, 3 in cervical carcinoma in Chinese women of Uygur ethnicity.Methods and ResultsReal-time PCR analyses demonstrated aquaporin 1, 3 mRNA were differentially expressed in cervical carcinoma, CIN 2-3 and mild cervicitis. Immunofluorescent and immunohistochemical analyses demonstrated aquaporin 1 was predominantly localized to stromal endothelial cells in cervical lesions. Aquaporin 3 was localized to the membrane of normal squamous epithelium, CIN and carcinoma cells. Aquaporin 1 and 3 were upregulated in cervical cancer compared to mild cervicitis and CIN2-3 (P<0.05); Tumor expression of aquaporin 1, 3 significantly increased in advanced stage disease, and patients with deeper tumor infiltration, lymph node metastases or larger tumor volume (P<0.05). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that aquaporin 1, 3 were not independent prognostic factors in cervical carcinoma.ConclusionAquaporins may participate in the initiation and progression of cervical carcinoma by promoting tumor growth, invasion or lymph node metastasis. Further study is required to determine whether aquaporins have potential as prognostic factors in cervical cancer.

Highlights

Cervical cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the fourth leading cause of cancer death in women, accounting for 9% (529,800) of all new cancer cases and 8% (275,100) of all cancer deaths among women in 2008 in the world
Aquaporins may participate in the initiation and progression of cervical carcinoma by promoting tumor growth, invasion or lymph node metastasis
We investigated the different expression of AQP1andAQP3 in both transcription and translation level in the cervical lesions of women of Uygur ethnicity from Xinjiang, China, and analyzed the prognostic value of AQP1 and AQP3 in cervical carcinoma

Summary

Introduction

Cervical cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the fourth leading cause of cancer death in women, accounting for 9% (529,800) of all new cancer cases and 8% (275,100) of all cancer deaths among women in 2008 in the world. In Xinjiang, China, especially southern Xinjiang, the incidence of cervical carcinoma in women of Uygur ethnicity is very high, with a prevalence of 527 per 100,000 females; and about 80% of these patients present at an advanced stage [2]. Aquaporins (AQPs) increase cell plasma membrane water permeability 5–50 times compared with that in membranes where water moves primarily through the lipid bilayer. Since their discovery, 13 mammalian APQ homologs (AQP 0–12) have been identified, which expressed in many epithelia, endothelia, and other types of cells. We determined the expression and prognostic value of aquaporin 1, 3 in cervical carcinoma in Chinese women of Uygur ethnicity

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Results

Conclusion