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Abstract Background Astrocyte elevated gene-1 (AEG-1) is associated with tumorigenesis and progression in diverse human cancers. The present study was aimed to investigate the clinical and prognostic significance of AEG-1 in salivary gland carcinomas (SGC). Methods Real-time PCR and western blot analyses were employed to examine AEG-1 expression in two normal salivary gland tissues, eight SGC tissues of various clinical stages, and five pairs of primary SGC and adjacent salivary gland tissues from the same patient. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was performed to examine AEG-1 protein expression in paraffin-embedded tissues from 141 SGC patients. Statistical analyses was applies to evaluate the diagnostic value and associations of AEG-1 expression with clinical parameters. Results AEG-1 expression was evidently up-regulated in SGC tissues compared with that in the normal salivary gland tissues and in matched adjacent salivary gland tissues. AEG-1 protein level was positively correlated with clinical stage (P < 0.001), T classification (P = 0.008), N classification (P = 0.008) and M classifications (P = 0.006). Patients with higher AEG-1 expression had shorter overall survival time, whereas those with lower tumor AEG-1 expression had longer survival time. Conclusions Our results suggest that AEG-1 expression is associated with SGC progression and may represent a novel and valuable predictor for prognostic evaluation of SGC patients.

Background: Src-associated in mitosis (Sam68; 68 kDa) has been implicated in the oncogenesis and progression of several human cancers. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinicopathologic significance of Sam68 expression and its subcellular localization in colorectal cancer (CRC).Methods: Sam68 expression was examined in CRC cell lines, nine matched CRC tissues and adjacent noncancerous tissues using reverse transcription (RT)-PCR, quantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting. Sam68 protein expression and localization were determined in 224 paraffin-embedded archived CRC samples using immunohistochemistry. Statistical analyses were applied to evaluate the clinicopathologic significance.Results: Sam68 was upregulated in CRC cell lines and CRC, as compared with normal tissues; high Sam68 expression was detected in 120/224 (53.6%) of the CRC tissues. High Sam68 expression correlated significantly with poor differentiation (P = 0.033), advanced T stage (P < 0.001), N stage (P = 0.023) and distant metastasis (P = 0.033). Sam68 nuclear localization correlated significantly with poor differentiation (P = 0.002) and T stage (P =0.021). Patients with high Sam68 expression or Sam68 nuclear localization had poorer overall survival than patients with low Sam68 expression or Sam68 cytoplasmic localization. Patients with high Sam68 expression had a higher risk of recurrence than those with low Sam68 expression.Conclusions: Overexpression of Sam68 correlated highly with cancer progression and poor differentiation in CRC. High Sam68 expression and Sam68 nuclear localization were associated with poorer overall survival. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Src-associated in mitosis (Sam68; 68 kDa) has been implicated in the oncogenesis and progression of several human cancers. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinicopathologic significance of Sam68 expression and its subcellular localization in colorectal cancer (CRC). Methods: Sam68 expression was examined in CRC cell lines, nine matched CRC tissues and adjacent noncancerous tissues using reverse transcription (RT)-PCR, quantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting. Sam68 protein expression and localization were determined in 224 paraffin-embedded archived CRC samples using immunohistochemistry. Statistical analyses were applied to evaluate the clinicopathologic significance. Results: Sam68 was upregulated in CRC cell lines and CRC, as compared with normal tissues; high Sam68 expression was detected in 120/224 (53.6%) of the CRC tissues. High Sam68 expression correlated significantly with poor differentiation (P = 0.033), advanced T stage (P < 0.001), N stage (P = 0.023) and distant metastasis (P = 0.033). Sam68 nuclear localization correlated significantly with poor differentiation (P = 0.002) and T stage (P =0.021). Patients with high Sam68 expression or Sam68 nuclear localization had poorer overall survival than patients with low Sam68 expression or Sam68 cytoplasmic localization. Patients with high Sam68 expression had a higher risk of recurrence than those with low Sam68 expression. Conclusions: Overexpression of Sam68 correlated highly with cancer progression and poor differentiation in CRC. High Sam68 expression and Sam68 nuclear localization were associated with poorer overall survival. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The flotillin family member flotillin-1 (FLOT1) encodes a caveolae-associated, integral membrane protein that belongs to lipid raft family and involves in vesicular trafficking and signal transduction. However, the role of FLOT1 in development and progression of cancer remains largely unknown. The present study was aimed to investigate the clinical and prognostic significance of FLOT1 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: Real-time PCR and western blot analyses were applied to examine FLOT1 expression in fourteen HCC cell lines and one normal hepatic cell line, ten pairs of primary HCC and matched adjacent noncancerous liver tissues from the same patient. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was performed to examine FLOT1 protein expression in paraffin-embedded tissues from 196 HCC patients. Statistical analyses were applied to evaluate the diagnostic value and associations of FLOT1 expression with clinical parameters. Results: FLOT1 expression was evidently up-regulated in HCC tissues compared with that in the matched adjacent noncancerous liver tissues. In the 196 cases of tested HCC samples, FLOT1 protein level was positively correlated with Tumor size (P = 0.025), clinical stage (P<0.002), CLIP stage (P<0.001), vascular invasion (P<0.001), relapse (P<0.001), and serum AFP levels (P = 0.025). Patients with higher FLOT1 expression had shorter overall survival time, whereas those with lower FLOT1 expression had longer survival time. Conclusions: Our study demonstrated FLOT1 is associated with aggressive characteristics of HCC, and suggested the possibility of its use as a prognostic marker in patients with HCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The present study was aimed to determine twist expression in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and to investigate the clinicopathological significance in the progress of NPC. Semiquantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting were carried out to investigate the expression of Twist in NPC cell lines and normal nasopharyngeal epithelial cell line, which showed that both Twist mRNA and protein were up-regulated in the tumor cells in comparison with the normal cells. We then examined Twist mRNA expression in non-cancerous nasopharyngeal mucosa (10 cases) and NPC (95 cases) using in situ hybridization. The results showed that Twist was overexpressed in 59 of 95 (62.1%) NPC samples. In contrast, there was no obvious expression of Twist mRNA in non-cancerous tissues. In addition, another 75 NPC samples were analyzed by immunohistochemistry, and 33 of the 75 samples were shown to be positive for Twist protein. Both Twist mRNA expression and Twist protein expression were positively associated with lymph-node metastasis and distant metastasis. Furthermore, expression of Twist protein was correlated with the NPC prognosis. Patients with NPC who were Twist protein-positive had a worse 5-year survival rate. These findings demonstrate that the Twist may play an important role in the invasion and metastasis of NPC. Twist protein is valuable marker for assessing the prognosis of NPC. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abnormal expression of FOXC2 has been found in several human cancers. However, the role of FOXC2 in the progression of colorectal cancer (CRC) has not been well characterized. In analysis of 206 CRC specimens, we revealed that both high expression and nuclear localization of FOXC2 were correlated to aggressive characteristics and poor survival of patients with CRC. FOXC2 promoted cell proliferation through activation of MAPK and AKT pathways, subsequently down-regulating p27, up-regulating cyclin D1 and p-FOXO3a. Furthermore, FOXC2 nuclear localization was required for its promotion of cell proliferation. These findings suggest that FOXC2 plays an essential role in CRC progression and may serve as a valuable clinical prognostic marker of this disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]