Abstract
Lymph node involvement is the most important predictor of survival rates in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). A biomarker that can indicate lymph node metastasis would be valuable to classify patients with OSCC for optimal treatment. In this study, we have performed a serum proteomic analysis of OSCC using 2-D gel electrophoresis and liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry. One of the down-regulated proteins in OSCC was identified as tetranectin, which is a protein encoded by the CLEC3B gene (C-type lectin domain family 3, member B). We further tested the protein level in serum and saliva from patients with lymph-node metastatic and primary OSCC. Tetranectin was found significantly under-expressed in both serum and saliva of metastatic OSCC compared to primary OSCC. Our results suggest that serum or saliva tetranectin may serve as a potential biomarker for metastatic OSCC. Other candidate serum biomarkers for OSCC included superoxide dismutase, ficolin 2, CD-5 antigen-like protein, RalA binding protein 1, plasma retinol-binding protein and transthyretin. Their clinical utility for OSCC detection remains to be further tested in cancer patients.
Highlights
Oral cancer, predominantly oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), is the sixth most common human cancer with an annual incidence of over 300,000 new cases worldwide [1,2]
Instead of analyzing pooled samples from patient or control groups, we individually mapped out serum proteins from 10 OSCC patient samples and 10 matched controls with 2-DE
Our study suggests that tetranectin is a potential biomarker for metastatic OSCC because tetranectin in both serum and saliva is significantly reduced in metastatic OSCC compared to primary OSCC
Summary
Predominantly oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), is the sixth most common human cancer with an annual incidence of over 300,000 new cases worldwide [1,2]. The disease frequently metastasizes to the lymph nodes, which represents the most important predictor of patient survival rates. 50% of patients with OSCC have detectable lymph node involvement at presentation. Less than 40% of patients with lymph node metastasis at presentation survive five years, compared to ~90% of patients without metastasis [3,4,5]. The survival rate decreases by approximately 50% when nodal metastasis is present. Treatment of individuals clinically diagnosed with lymph node metastasis (N+) often involves a surgical procedure of radical neck dissection (RND)
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