Schipper J H, Frixen U H, Behrens J, Unger A, Jahnke K, Birchmeier W
Institut für Zellbiologie (Tumorforschung), Medical School, University of Essen, Germany.
Cancer Res. 1991 Dec 1;51(23 Pt 1):6328-37.
Tissue sections of 32 squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) of the head and neck were investigated for the expression of the epithelium-specific cell adhesion molecule E-cadherin. We found that E-cadherin expression is inversely correlated both with the loss of differentiation of the tumor and with lymph node metastasis. The well-differentiated SCCs expressed E-cadherin, often as strongly as the normal stratified epithelium (12 cases were tested); the moderately differentiated SCCs expressed intermediate amounts of E-cadherin or were heterogeneous (15 cases were analyzed); whereas the poorly differentiated SCCs were all E-cadherin-negative (five cases were investigated). Furthermore, seven of eight infiltrated lymph nodes of SCCs were E-cadherin-negative. These data indicate that the loss of the cell adhesion molecule E-cadherin in fact plays an important role in the progression of human squamous cell carcinomas, i.e., that down-regulation of expression is associated with dedifferentiation and metastasis of the tumor cells in vivo.
对头颈部32例鳞状细胞癌（SCC）的组织切片进行了上皮特异性细胞粘附分子E-钙粘蛋白表达情况的研究。我们发现，E-钙粘蛋白的表达与肿瘤分化程度的降低以及淋巴结转移均呈负相关。高分化的SCC表达E-钙粘蛋白，其强度常与正常复层上皮相当（检测了12例）；中分化的SCC表达中等量的E-钙粘蛋白或呈异质性表达（分析了15例）；而低分化的SCC均为E-钙粘蛋白阴性（研究了5例）。此外，SCC的8个浸润淋巴结中有7个E-钙粘蛋白阴性。这些数据表明，细胞粘附分子E-钙粘蛋白的缺失实际上在人类鳞状细胞癌的进展中起重要作用，即表达下调与体内肿瘤细胞的去分化和转移相关。
