Saito T, Katagiri A, Watanabe R, Tanikawa T, Kawasaki T, Tomita Y, Takahashi K
Department of Urology, Niigata Cancer Center Hospital, Niigata, Japan.
Urol Int. 2000;65(3):140-3. doi: 10.1159/000064859.
E-cadherin (ECD) is a homophilic Ca(2+)-dependent adhesion molecule associated with cell-to-cell interactions and normal growth. Recent reports have suggested that decrease or loss of ECD facilitates tumor progression and/or metastasis. ECD functions in a complex called an adherens junction, which includes several other proteins including alpha- and beta-catenin. In the present study, fresh-frozen sections from 32 testis cancers, 16 seminomas and 16 non-seminomatous germ cell tumors (NSGCT), were examined immunohistochemically. E-cadherin was not expressed on normal germ cells, but expressed on 3 (18.8%) of 16 seminomas and 10 (62.5%) of 16 NSGCTs, mainly on the epithelial component of teratoma cells. alpha-Catenin was detected on 0 (0%) of 13 seminomas and 4 (25%) of 16 NSGCTs. beta-Catenin was detected on 10 (71.4%) of 14 seminomas and 13 (81.2%) of 16 NSGCTs. ECD was detected significantly more frequently on NSGCTs than on seminomas. Immunoblot analysis confirmed the expression of ECD and beta-catenin in NSGCTs. Expression of ECD and catenins may reflect the degree of differentiation and provide some information on the character of the tumor.
E-钙黏蛋白（ECD）是一种与细胞间相互作用和正常生长相关的同嗜性钙离子依赖性黏附分子。最近的报道表明，ECD的减少或缺失促进肿瘤进展和/或转移。ECD在一种称为黏着连接的复合物中发挥作用，该复合物包括几种其他蛋白质，如α-连环蛋白和β-连环蛋白。在本研究中，对32例睾丸癌、16例精原细胞瘤和16例非精原性生殖细胞肿瘤（NSGCT）的新鲜冰冻切片进行了免疫组织化学检查。E-钙黏蛋白在正常生殖细胞上不表达，但在16例精原细胞瘤中的3例（18.8%）和16例NSGCT中的10例（62.5%）表达，主要在畸胎瘤细胞的上皮成分上表达。在13例精原细胞瘤中的0例（0%）和16例NSGCT中的4例（25%）检测到α-连环蛋白。在14例精原细胞瘤中的10例（71.4%）和16例NSGCT中的13例（81.2%）检测到β-连环蛋白。NSGCT中检测到ECD的频率明显高于精原细胞瘤。免疫印迹分析证实了NSGCT中ECD和β-连环蛋白的表达。ECD和连环蛋白的表达可能反映分化程度，并提供有关肿瘤特征的一些信息。
