Institute of Developmental Biology, School of Life Sciences, Shandong University, Jinan, PR China.
Acta Histochem. 2011 Sep;113(5):564-9. doi: 10.1016/j.acthis.2010.06.003. Epub 2010 Jul 24.
Abnormal hyperactivation of the hedgehog (Hh) pathway has been reported in many types of human cancers, including lung cancer. However, most reports are based on studies of fewer than three Hh target genes and the data vary between different studies. In the present report, we have determined the expression levels of several important components of the Hh pathway in lung cancers by using RT-PCR, in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry. These molecules include Smoothened (SMO), Rab23, the downstream target platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha (PDGFRα), hedgehog interacting protein (HIP) and hepatocyte nuclear factor 3-beta (HNF3β). Our data show that some components of the hedgehog pathway, such as SMO, Rab23 and PDGFRα are expressed in many lung cancer specimens, although other hedgehog target genes are infrequently detected in lung cancer. Loss of HIP expression was found in several cases of lung cancers. Our study indicates that there might be some additional mechanisms involved in the hyperactivation of the Hh pathway. Thus, we suggest that lung cancer with heterogeneous tumor type harboring Hh signaling activation may have some novel and different regulatory mechanisms.
异常的刺猬（Hedgehog，Hh）信号通路的激活已在许多类型的人类癌症中被报道，包括肺癌。然而，大多数报道基于对少于三种 Hh 靶基因的研究，并且不同研究之间的数据存在差异。在本报告中，我们通过 RT-PCR、原位杂交和免疫组织化学方法确定了肺癌中 Hh 通路的几个重要成分的表达水平。这些分子包括 Smoothened（SMO）、Rab23、下游靶点血小板衍生生长因子受体α（PDGFRα）、Hedgehog 相互作用蛋白（HIP）和肝细胞核因子 3-β（HNF3β）。我们的数据表明，Hh 通路的一些成分，如 SMO、Rab23 和 PDGFRα，在许多肺癌标本中表达，尽管在肺癌中很少检测到其他 Hh 靶基因。在几例肺癌中发现 HIP 表达缺失。我们的研究表明，Hh 通路的过度激活可能涉及一些其他机制。因此，我们建议含有 Hh 信号激活的异质性肿瘤类型的肺癌可能具有一些新的和不同的调控机制。
