Markers In Tumor Tissue Research Articles

Modulation of Circulating Angiogenic Factors and Tumor Biology by Aerobic Training in Breast Cancer Patients Receiving Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy

Aerobic exercise training (AET) is an effective adjunct therapy to attenuate the adverse side-effects of adjuvant chemotherapy in women with early breast cancer. Whether AET interacts with the antitumor efficacy of chemotherapy has received scant attention. We carried out a pilot study to explore the effects of AET in combination with neoadjuvant doxorubicin-cyclophosphamide (AC+AET), relative to AC alone, on: (i) host physiology [exercise capacity (VO2 peak), brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (BA-FMD)], (ii) host-related circulating factors [circulating endothelial progenitor cells (CEP) cytokines and angiogenic factors (CAF)], and (iii) tumor phenotype [tumor blood flow ((15)O-water PET), tissue markers (hypoxia and proliferation), and gene expression] in 20 women with operable breast cancer. AET consisted of three supervised cycle ergometry sessions/week at 60% to 100% of VO2 peak, 30 to 45 min/session, for 12 weeks. There was significant time × group interactions for VO2 peak and BA-FMD, favoring the AC+AET group (P < 0.001 and P = 0.07, respectively). These changes were accompanied by significant time × group interactions in CEPs and select CAFs [placenta growth factor, interleukin (IL)-1β, and IL-2], also favoring the AC+AET group (P < 0.05). (15)O-water positron emission tomography (PET) imaging revealed a 38% decrease in tumor blood flow in the AC+AET group. There were no differences in any tumor tissue markers (P > 0.05). Whole-genome microarray tumor analysis revealed significant differential modulation of 57 pathways (P < 0.01), including many that converge on NF-κB. Data from this exploratory study provide initial evidence that AET can modulate several host- and tumor-related pathways during standard chemotherapy. The biologic and clinical implications remain to be determined.

Glioma Grade Is Associated with the Accumulation and Activity of Cells Bearing M2 Monocyte Markers

This study is directed at identifying the cell source(s) of immunomodulatory cytokines in high-grade gliomas and establishing whether the analysis of associated markers has implications for tumor grading. Glioma specimens classified as WHO grade II-IV by histopathology were assessed by gene expression analysis and immunohistochemistry to identify the cells producing interleukin (IL)-10, which was confirmed by flow cytometry and factor secretion in culture. Finally, principal component analysis (PCA) and mixture discriminant analysis (MDA) were used to investigate associations between expressed genes and glioma grade. The principle source of glioma-associated IL-10 is a cell type that bears phenotype markers consistent with M2 monocytes but does not express all M2-associated genes. Measures of expression of the M2 cell markers CD14, CD68, CD163, and CD204, which are elevated in high-grade gliomas, and the neutrophil/myeloid-derived suppressor cell (MDSC) subset marker CD15, which is reduced, provide the best index of glioma grade. Grade II and IV astrocytomas can be clearly differentiated on the basis of the expression of certain M2 markers in tumor tissues, whereas grade III astrocytomas exhibit a range of expression between the lower and higher grade specimens. The content of CD163(+) cells distinguishes grade III astrocytoma subsets with different prognosis.

Reactive oxygen species mediate Cr(VI)-induced carcinogenesis through PI3K/AKT-dependent activation of GSK-3β/β-catenin signaling

Cr(VI) compounds are known human carcinogens that primarily target the lungs. Cr(VI) produces reactive oxygen species (ROS), but the exact effects of ROS on the signaling molecules involved in Cr(VI)-induced carcinogenesis have not been extensively studied. Chronic exposure of human bronchial epithelial cells to Cr(VI) at nanomolar concentrations (10–100nM) for 3months not only induced cell transformation, but also increased the potential of these cells to invade and migrate. Injection of Cr(VI)-stimulated cells into nude mice resulted in the formation of tumors. Chronic exposure to Cr(VI) increased levels of intracellular ROS and antiapoptotic proteins. Transfection with catalase or superoxide dismutase (SOD) prevented Cr(VI)-mediated increases in colony formation, cell invasion, migration, and xenograft tumors. While chronic Cr(VI) exposure led to activation of signaling cascades involving PI3K/AKT/GSK-3β/β-catenin and PI3K/AKT/mTOR, transfection with catalase or SOD markedly inhibited Cr(VI)-mediated activation of these signaling proteins. Inhibitors specific for AKT or β-catenin almost completely suppressed the Cr(VI)-mediated increase in total and active β-catenin proteins and colony formation. In particular, Cr(VI) suppressed autophagy of epithelial cells under nutrition deprivation. Furthermore, there was a marked induction of AKT, GSK-3β, β-catenin, mTOR, and carcinogenic markers in tumor tissues formed in mice after injection with Cr(VI)-stimulated cells. Collectively, our findings suggest that ROS is a key mediator of Cr(VI)-induced carcinogenesis through the activation of PI3K/AKT-dependent GSK-3β/β-catenin signaling and the promotion of cell survival mechanisms via the inhibition of apoptosis and autophagy.

MERiDiAN: A phase III, randomized, double-blind study of the efficacy, safety, and associated biomarkers of bevacizumab plus paclitaxel compared with paclitaxel plus placebo, as first-line treatment of patients with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer.

TPS1142^ Background: Bevacizumab (BV), a humanized monoclonal antibody targeting the angiogenic VEGF, has demonstrated activity in patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC). Plasma VEGF-A levels ([VEGF-A]p) appear to positively correlate with the effect of BV on progression-free survival (PFS) in MBC, metastatic pancreatic, and advanced gastric cancers. The MERiDiAN study will prospectively investigate (1) whether baseline [VEGF-A]ppredict treatment benefit with BV, (2) efficacy of BV with weekly paclitaxel (P), based on previously observed differences in the magnitude of benefit compared with BV + non-P chemotherapies. Methods: MERiDiAN is a global, randomized, double-blind, phase III study enrolling patients with HER2-negative MBC (first patient was enrolled in August 2012). The co-primary endpoints are PFS by investigator assessment in the intent-to-treat (ITT) population, and PFS in the subgroup with high baseline [VEGF-A]p. Secondary endpoints are overall survival (OS), 1-year survival, objective response rate and duration, and safety. Exploratory objectives include assessing the predictive or prognostic potential of blood, DNA and tumor tissue markers, and genetic variants involved in angiogenesis and tumorigenesis, with regard to BV efficacy and safety.Patients will be randomized 1:1 to either P 90 mg/m2 IV weekly (qw) for 3 weeks followed by a 1-week rest and BV 10 mg/kg every 2 weeks (q2w) until disease progression (PD); or P 90 mg/m2IV qw for 3 weeks followed by a 1-week rest and placebo 10 mg/kg q2w until PD. An interim analysis of OS will be performed at the time of the primary PFS analysis. Clinical Trial Registry Number NCT01663727. Clinical trial information: NCT01663727.

Detection of minimal residual disease in lung cancer

Even after successful radical treatment of lung cancer, patients in stages I and II of the TNM system very frequently suffer recurrence, which end lethally. Detection of subclinical residual disease after surgery is thus one of the most important emerging diagnostic methods. Minimal residual disease (MRD) is defined as the presence of isolated tumor cells or circulating cells in a patient after curative primary tumor removal and at the same time, no clinical signs of cancer. Conventional methods cannot detect minimal residual disease and hence there is a need for detection using new molecular biological methods. We searched the PubMed database for original and review articles on minimal residual disease in lung cancer. Search words were "lung cancer", "minimal residual disease" and "detection of minimal residual disease". The publications we found were compared with the results of our own studies on the detection of minimal residual disease in lung cancer and the personal experiences are described. Examination of blood samples from 98 healthy volunteers and bone marrow from 12 patients with non inflammatory and non tumour illness, were used to determine cut-off values for specific markers in the compartments. Subsequently, expression of selected markers in tumor tissue was analysed in a pilot sample of 50 patients with lung cancer and the presence of MRD was measured as expression of values of the tested markers correlated with clinico-pathological characteristics. Recent studies on other malignancies apart from lung cancer have shown the importance of MRD detection in the determination of disease progression and prognosis. The methods of MRD diagnostics are based on detection of specific tumor markers. Of these, the most specific for lung cancer, appears to be the LunX protein. The best method for determining MRD is probably RT-PCR. Further studies should expand knowledge in this area: to refine understanding of the importance of tumor markers for prognosis, as well as to confirm the significance of these findings in clinical practice.

Evaluating the Potential Role of Pomegranate Peel in Aluminum-Induced Oxidative Stress and Histopathological Alterations in Brain of Female Rats

Studies have shown that pomegranate, Punica granatum Linn. (Lythraceae), has remarkable biological and medicinal properties. However, the effects of pomegranate peel methanolic extract (PPME) on the aluminum-induced oxidative stress and histopathological change have not been reported yet. To determine the effect of PPME (200 mg/kg bwt) on the aluminum chloride (AlCl₃; 34 mg/kg bwt)-induced neurotoxicity, aluminum accumulation in brain and oxidant/antioxidant status were determined. The change of brain structure was investigated with hematoxylin and eosin, and anti-apoptosis effects of PPME were analyzed by immunohistochemistry. The present study showed an indication of carcinogenicity in the AlCl₃-treated group representing an increase in tissue tumor markers such as tumor necrosis factor-α and angiogenin and inflammation by inducing an increase in prostaglandin E2 and prostaglandin F2α. PPME protected brain through decreasing the aluminum accumulation and stimulating antioxidant activities and anti-apoptotic proteins namely Bcl-2. Therefore, these results indicated that pomegranate peel methanolic extract could inhibit aluminum-induced oxidative stress and histopathological alternations in brain of female rats, and these effects may be related to anti-apoptotic and antioxidants activities.

Cadmium induces carcinogenesis in BEAS-2B cells through ROS-dependent activation of PI3K/AKT/GSK-3β/β-catenin signaling

Cadmium has been widely used in industry and is known to be carcinogenic to humans. Although it is widely accepted that chronic exposure to cadmium increases the incidence of cancer, the mechanisms underlying cadmium-induced carcinogenesis are unclear. The main aim of this study was to investigate the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cadmium-induced carcinogenesis and the signal transduction pathways involved. Chronic exposure of human bronchial epithelial BEAS-2B cells to cadmium induced cell transformation, as evidenced by anchorage-independent growth in soft agar and clonogenic assays. Chronic cadmium treatment also increased the potential of these cells to invade and migrate. Injection of cadmium-stimulated cells into nude mice resulted in the formation of tumors. In contrast, the cadmium-mediated increases in colony formation, cell invasion and migration were prevented by transfection with catalase, superoxide dismutase-1 (SOD1), or SOD2. In particular, chronic cadmium exposure led to activation of signaling cascades involving PI3K, AKT, GSK-3β, and β-catenin and transfection with each of the above antioxidant enzymes markedly inhibited cadmium-mediated activation of these signaling proteins. Inhibitors specific for AKT or β-catenin almost completely suppressed the cadmium-mediated increase in total and active β-catenin proteins and colony formation. Moreover, there was a marked induction of AKT, GSK-3β, β-catenin, and carcinogenic markers in tumor tissues formed in mice after injection with cadmium-stimulated cells. Collectively, our findings suggest a direct involvement of ROS in cadmium-induced carcinogenesis and implicate a role of AKT/GSK-3β/β-catenin signaling in this process.

Expression and the prognostic relevance of p53, Bcl-2, Bax, and Ki-67 in uterine leiomyosarcoma.

e15506 Background: Uterine leiomyosarcomas (LMS) are rare, aggressive gynecological malignancies of the female reproductive tract. They represent less than 2-5% of all uterine malignancies. Despite the advanced modern treatment modalities, according to our data 5 year overall and disease - free survival of patients with LMS is 48,5± 4,2% and 44.3 ± 4.3 %, respectively. One of the challenging directions in advancing the prognosis and optimization of treatment tactics in LMS is investigating the expression of molecular-biological markers in tumor tissue. So, the aim of our study was to evaluate the expression of p53, Bcl-2, Bax, and Ki-67 and their prognostic relevance. Methods: A retrospective chart review was done to 198 patients with LMS treated at the N.N. Blokhin Russian Cancer Research Center from 1971 to 2009. Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining for 20 patients was performed for p53, Bcl-2, Bax and Ki-67. Negative and positive IHC staining was scored for each marker. Survival was determined from the time of initial diagnosis to last follow-up. Results: Ten (50%) patients with LMS expressed p53. P53+ patients mostly had multiple metastases, compared to p53– patients with solitar metastases (60% against 20%) (g&lt;0,05). Eleven (55%) patients expressed Bcl-2 and 4 (20%) expressed Bax. In Bcl-2 + patients distant metastases were observed in 45,5%, compared to Bcl-2 – patients were we observed metastatic disease in 77,8% (p=0,068). Expression of ki-67 was observed in 15 patients (75%). Conclusions: LMS patients with p53 expression had a poorer survival compared to LMS patients with negative expression (g53+ — 26,7±18,4% and g53– — 80,0±12,6%) (g&lt;0,05). On opposite, the disease-free survivla is better in bcl-2+ patients, compared to patients, who don’t express bcl-2 (47,2±19,6% and 28,1±18,0%, respectevly (g&gt;0,05). We didn’t observe statistical significant difference in survival depending on Bax expression. LMS patients with Ki-67 expression had a poorer survival compared to LMS patients with negative expression (34,9±13,1% and 60,0±20,7% , respectively) (g&gt;0,05). Our study indicates that p53 expression may serve as a prognostic marker for LMS patients.

Oral contraceptive and progestin-only use correlates to tissue tumor marker expression in women with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia

BackgroundThe study was conducted to investigate correlations between combined oral contraceptive (COC), any progestin-only contraceptive, medicated intrauterine device (MID) or systemic progestin-only (Syst-P) use and tumor marker expression in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia compared to nonusers. Study DesignOne-hundred ninety-five women of fertile age with cervical biopsies ranging histologically from normal epithelium to carcinoma in situ were recruited consecutively. Combined oral contraceptive, Syst-P and MID users were investigated according to the expression of 11 tumor markers. ResultsOverexpression of cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2) was observed in COC users, while interleukin 10 was underexpressed. When users of progestogen-only contraceptives were analyzed, there was a lower expression of cytokeratin 10 and interleukin 10. When only MID users were analyzed, a high expression of p53 was found. Expression of Cox-2, p53 and retinoblastoma protein differed between COC and MID users. ConclusionThe study showed molecular alterations, which, in general, have not been studied previously in COC users and have never been studied in progestogen-only users. These biological events might be involved in epidemiological correlations found between hormonal contraceptive use and cervical neoplasms.

Analysis of laser-microdissected prostate cancer tissues reveals potential tumor markers

Prostate cancer (PCA) is a clinically heterogeneous and often multifocal disease with a clinical outcome difficult to predict. A deeper knowledge of the molecular basis of the disease may lead to a better prediction of prognosis. Therefore, in this study we investigated the molecular basis of PCA by identifying potential tumor markers in laser-microdisected PCA tissues. Among a group of PCA patients, quantitative RT-PCR analysis was performed to compare the expression of 70 genes. These genes were selected from the results of two microarrays which investigated the gene expression profile differences between moderately or poorly differentiated prostate carcinoma glands and the corresponding normal glands. Among the genes examined, CDKN2A, GATA3, CREBBP, ITGA2, NBL1 and TGM4 were down-regulated in the prostate carcinoma glands compared to the corresponding normal glands, whereas TFF3, TMPRSS2 and ERG were up-regulated. Our findings indicate that these genes may play roles as tumor suppressor genes or oncogenes in PCA, and may serve as potential tumor markers and novel therapeutic targets.

Green Fluorescent-Conjugated Anti-CEA Single Chain Antibody for the Detection of CEA-Positive Cancer Cells

According to World Health Organization (WHO), cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide, accounting for 7.4 million deaths (around 13% of all deaths) in 2004. Monoclonal/recombinant antibodies, which specifically target clinical biomarkers of disease, have increasingly been applied as powerful tools in cancer imaging and therapy, a fact that is highlighted by some nine FDA-approved monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) or their immunoconjugates (as of December 2008) for use in cancer treatment. In this study, five monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) were generated and characterized against carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), which is widely used clinically as both a blood and tissue tumor marker of epithelial malignancy. Variable domains (VH and VL) of one the stable MAbs with highest affinity were PCR-amplified and assembled as single-chain antibody fragment (scFv). Following the cloning and expression of scFv antibody fragments in Escherichia coli, the functional binding and specificity of the recombinant antibody were confirmed by ELISA. To develop a direct in vitro detection of CEA-positive cancer cells, scFv DNA was genetically fused to enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) gene and expressed in bacteria. The chimeric fluorescent protein is able to specifically detect CEA-positive cell lines; no cross-reactivity was observed with a negative control cell line. This strategy will likely allow the establishment of a rapid, single-step detection assay of CEA, which is considered to be one of the best predictors of malignancy among all other tumor markers.

Abstract 3754: DNA methylation in hepatocellular carcinoma

Abstract Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the third most common cause of cancer death in the world. In the last three decades, HCC incidence has been increasing throughout the western world and research to uncover molecular mechanisms and markers of the disease has expanded. DNA methylation is a relevant molecular alteration in liver carcinogenesis. We carried out a retrospective study of 31 HCC cases to better understand the role of promoter methylation and global methylation changes in association with viral status, smoking exposure and other clinicopathological characteristics of HCC. Levels of DNA methylation were determined by pyrosequencing in DNA extracted from tumor and non-tumor adjacent tissue. We selected a panel of genes previously found to be implicated in epigenetic changes during liver carcinogenesis. The promoter regions of P16, APC, RASSF1A, CHGA and TP73 were investigated and the promoter region of the interspersed repetitive element LINE1 was used as a marker of global DNA methylation. We found statistically significant differences between the levels of DNA methylation in tumor and non-adjacent tumor tissue for P16, APC and TP73. Elevated methylation percentages were found for all markers in tumor tissue when compared to the corresponding non-tumor tissue DNA (P16tumor =35.9% vs. P16normal =4.9%, p&amp;lt;0.0001; APCtumor =42.1% vs. APCnormal =12.5%, p&amp;lt;0.0001; TP73tumor =37.7% vs. TP73normal =23.6%, p=0.007). Global methylation levels as measured by LINE1, were significantly lower in tumor tissue than in non-tumor adjacent tissue DNA (LINE1tumor =55.9% vs. LINE1normal =72.7%, p&amp;lt;0.0001). Statistically significant differences were also found between smokers and non-smokers in the levels of global DNA methylation of tumor tissue DNA (LINE1non-smokers = 60.30% vs. LINE1smokers=69.04%, p=0.05). Additional research into the association between DNA methylation and viral hepatitis status revealed no statistically significant differences between HCV carriers and non-carriers for any of the methylation markers studied. Clinicopathological characteristics of these patients were also analyzed in association with DNA methylation. Differences in tumor stage and survival were not associated with a statistically significant difference in DNA methylation percentages of tumor tissue DNA for these markers. However, CHGA promoter methylation was statistically significantly higher in low grade tumors than high grade tumors (CHGAgrade &amp;gt;2 = 19.83% vs. CHGAgrade ≤2 = 22.11%, p=0.04). Our results suggest that smoking might affect epigenetic mechanisms involved in liver carcinogenesis, and revealed potentially new prognostic epigenetic markers. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 3754. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-3754

Proteomic Molecular Portrait of Interface Zone in Breast Cancer

Surgical tumor margins are intended to encompass residual tumor cells but may not always accurately delineate the boundary between tumor and normal tissue. Efforts to define tumor margins based on molecular analysis have achieved limited success. Furthermore, no clinical trials have addressed the scope of the tumor microenvironment. Here, we considered the tumor cell population and surrounding microenvironment in delineating tumor margins, classifying breast cancer into tumor and normal zones, and introducing the concept of an interface zone, the region between the invading tumor front and normal tissue, which develops during tumor invasion and metastasis through remodeling of the tumor microenvironment. Pathological signatures of invasion markers in tumor tissues are most dynamic within the invading tumor front. We compared protein profiles of tumor, normal, and interface zones using MALDI-MS. Proteins upregulated in the interface zone were identified by peptide mass fingerprinting and confirmed by database searching with chemically assisted MALDI-PSD spectra. Upregulation was confirmed for RhoGDIα, CAPG, WDR1, and CK8 by Western and immunohistochemical analyses. Our results demonstrate that the molecular profile of the interface zone is unique and suggest that upregulation of proteins here may be related to progression and metastasis of breast carcinomas.

Late presentation of a mucinous ovarian adenocarcinoma which was initially diagnosed as a primary pancreatic carcinoma: a case report and review of the literature

IntroductionAdenocarcinoma of the ovary is an aggressive neoplasm which often metastasizes to the lung or liver. Metastases rarely occur to the pancreas, but a tissue diagnosis is required to confirm this event. Although most tumors of the pancreas are primary pancreatic neoplasms, metastatic lesions have been reported most commonly as arising from renal cell carcinoma.Case presentationWe report the case of a 51-year-old Caucasian woman with ovarian mucinous adenocarcinoma with metastasis to the head of the pancreas that was originally misdiagnosed as a pancreatic primary tumor.ConclusionMucinous ovarian adenocarcinomas rarely metastasize to the pancreas. New pancreatic lesions should be investigated through tissue biopsy and tumor markers, while keeping an open-minded differential diagnosis to avoid a misdiagnosis or a delay in treatment.

Tissue tumor marker expression in smokers, including serum cotinine concentrations, in women with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia or normal squamous cervical epithelium

The purpose of this study was to investigate correlations between smoking and serum cotinine, respectively, and tumor marker expression in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and normal epithelium. Women (n = 228) with cervical biopsy specimens that ranged histologically from normal to carcinoma in situ (CIN III) were included. Expression of 11 tumor markers with possible relevance in cervical neoplasms was studied. Smoking habits were recorded, and serum was assessed for cotinine concentrations. No differences were found in tumor marker expression in normal epithelium between smokers and nonsmokers. The tumor suppressors p53 and fragile histidine triad and the immunologic marker interleukin-10 were underexpressed, and the tumor markers cyclooxygenase-2 and Ki-67 were overexpressed in smoking, compared with nonsmoking, women with CIN and particularly in all fertile women. The molecular pattern indicates that smoking exerts unfavorable effects in cervical neoplasia. This provides biologic evidence of smoking being a true cofactor in cervical neoplasia.

COX-2 is associated with proliferation and apoptosis markers and serves as an independent prognostic factor in gastric cancer

Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is an important factor in gastric carcinogenesis, and COX-2 expression in gastric cancer patients correlates with prognosis. We have now studied the impact of COX-2 in comparison to six other tissue tumor markers, DNA index, and S-phase fraction (SPF) in a large series of gastric cancer specimens. From 342 consecutive patients, 337 archival tissue specimens were available for immunohistochemistry of COX-2, HuR, cyclin A, MMP-2, p53, p21, and Ki-67 and 313 for analysis of DNA index and S-phase fraction by flow cytometry. Associations between factors were assessed by chi-square test and survival analysis by the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox model. A significant association emerged between of COX-2 and p53 (p < 0.0001), Ki-67 (p = 0.013), DNA ploidy (p < 0.0001), and SPF (p < 0.0001). In an extended multivariate analysis, COX-2 and p53 expression were independent prognostic factors for poor survival, in addition to high stage and non-curative surgery. In gastric cancer, COX-2 expression associated with markers for apoptosis and proliferation, and furthermore, it was confirmed that COX-2 and p53 are strong prognostic indicators.

Advancement of tumor markers associated with radiosensitivity of esophageal carcinoma

Tumor markers associated with the radiosensitivity of esophageal carcinoma are mainly divid-ed into tissue tumor markers and serum tumor markers. Tissue tumor markers include hypoxia inducible factor-1α, cyclooxygenase-2, p53 protein, p21 protein, epidermal growth factor receptor, Ki67 and Survivin, while serum tumor markers include vascular endothelial growth factor, squamous cell carcinoma-antigen and so on. Detection of these markers may be helpful for predicting the radiosensitivity of esophageal carcinoma and making optimal treatment plans. Key words: Esophageal neoplasms; Tumor markers,biological; Radiation tolerance

The Relationship of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor and Coagulation Factor (Fibrin and Fibrinogen) Expression in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma

To investigate the relationship between angiogenesis and coagulation markers in tumor tissues of primary renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Tumors stimulate angiogenesis and activate the coagulation cascade. The importance of the interplay between these pathways for RCC is unknown. In all, 69 clear cell RCC specimens were analyzed by immunohistochemical staining applied to tissue microarrays. The expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), hypoxia-inducible factor-1alpha, fibrinogen and fibrin, and microvessel density were visually analyzed. Finally, staining patterns were related to clinical variables and survival. The VEGF expression was detected in 100% of tumors, with 68% showing a high expression, whereas hypoxia-inducible factor-1alpha staining was low (only 26% had a moderate to high staining). Fibrinogen was expressed adjacent to the tumor cells in 26% of cases, whereas in 84% it was expressed around the blood vessels. In 30% of tumors, expression of fibrin was detected. High tumor VEGF expression correlated with high fibrin staining (P = .05). From a multivariate analysis, microvessel density (P = .033) and fibrinogen adjacent to tumor cells (P = .046) were independent factors related to VEGF expression. In this study, we found clinical evidence for the permeability activity of VEGF as reflected by extravascular fibrinogen expression adjacent to tumor cells in the extracellular matrix. In addition, VEGF and fibrin expression were associated, indicative for concomitant activation of the coagulation cascade and angiogenesis in RCC. Taken together, these data indicate that activation of angiogenesis and coagulation are related in RCC.

No-match ORESTES explored as tumor markers

Sequencing technologies and new bioinformatics tools have led to the complete sequencing of various genomes. However, information regarding the human transcriptome and its annotation is yet to be completed. The Human Cancer Genome Project, using ORESTES (open reading frame EST sequences) methodology, contributed to this objective by generating data from about 1.2 million expressed sequence tags. Approximately 30% of these sequences did not align to ESTs in the public databases and were considered no-match ORESTES. On the basis that a set of these ESTs could represent new transcripts, we constructed a cDNA microarray. This platform was used to hybridize against 12 different normal or tumor tissues. We identified 3421 transcribed regions not associated with annotated transcripts, representing 83.3% of the platform. The total number of differentially expressed sequences was 1007. Also, 28% of analyzed sequences could represent noncoding RNAs. Our data reinforces the knowledge of the human genome being pervasively transcribed, and point out molecular marker candidates for different cancers. To reinforce our data, we confirmed, by real-time PCR, the differential expression of three out of eight potentially tumor markers in prostate tissues. Lists of 1007 differentially expressed sequences, and the 291 potentially noncoding tumor markers were provided.

Caveolin-1 overexpression correlates with tumour progression markers in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

The assessment of caveolin-1 (Cav-1) as a marker of tumor aggressiveness in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). In this study, we examined the expression of Cav-1 in 34 human PDAC tissue samples and the associated peritumoral tissues by immunohistochemistry and western blot. Additionally, we correlated Cav-1 expression with other tissue (Ki-67, p53) and serum (CA 19-9) tumor markers. In the tumor-derived tissue, both tumor cells and blood vessels expressed Cav-1. In contrast, in peritumoral tissue, Cav-1 expression was confined mainly to blood vessels and was only occasionally expressed in ductal or parenchymal cells. Western blot analysis confirmed the overexpression of Cav-1 in pancreatic tumors compared with peritumoral tissue. Cav-1 expression in tumor tissues was correlated with both the Ki-67 LI (r = 0.95, P < 0.0001) and p53 expression (chi2 = 9.91, P < 0.005). Overexpression of Cav-1 was associated with tumor size, grade and stage and Cav-1 expression in tumors was correlated with an increased serum level of CA 19-9 (r = 0.795, P < 0.001). Based on the results of this study, the inclusion of Cav-1 in a putative panel of biomarkers predicting pancreatic cancer aggressiveness is warranted.