Tissue expression of manganese superoxide dismutase is a candidate prognostic marker for glioblastoma.

Background: Characterization of a rare subgroup of glioblastoma patients who survive for more than 3 years (long-term survival glioblastoma, LTSGBL, patients) may be helpful to identify prognostic factors.
Materials and Methods: A molecular-profiling proteomic approach using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) were used to identify prognostic factors associated with glioblastoma by comparing frozen tumor tissue from LTSGBL patients with matched samples from short-term survival glioblastoma (STSGBL) patients. Western blot (WB) analysis, reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immmunohistochemical (IHC) staining were used for confirmation.
Results: Among most candidate spots identified by 2-DE, lack of overexpression of manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) in LTSGBL samples was consistently observed using WB and RT-PCR.
Conclusion: These results suggest that MnSOD expression level in tumor tissue is a candidate marker for the prognosis of glioblastoma patients.
(Copyright 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel.)