Wang Hong-Han, Wang Xing-Wei, Tang Can-E
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Xiangya Hospital, Central-South University, Changsha City, Hunan Province, China.
J Cancer Res Ther. 2011 Apr-Jun;7(2):138-42. doi: 10.4103/0973-1482.82926.
To investigate osteopontin (OPN) expression in human nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and evaluate its clinical significance in the disease.
The expression of OPN mRNA in 44 frozen NPC tissue and 15 normal nasopharyngeal epithelium tissue (NNET) samples was examined by semi-quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). OPN protein expression in 67 paraffin-embedded NPC tissue and 21 NNET samples was detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC). In addition, OPN expression was investigated in 12 paired NPC and para-carcinoma tissue (PCT) samples by western blotting (WB). The association between the expression of OPN and the clinicopathologic parameters of NPC was evaluated.
Three different methods all showed that the expression of OPN mRNA or protein in NPC was significantly higher than in NNET or PCT (P = 0.000, 0.001, 0.000, respectively). After an examination by IHC, 88.1% (59/67) of NPC samples showed strong or moderate positive OPN staining and 28.6% (6/21) of NNET samples displayed a weak positive OPN staining. The staining of OPN in tumor cells was mainly localized to the cytoplasm. OPN expression in NPC was not related to patient age or sex (P > 0.05), but was significantly related to tumor size, regional lymph nodal metastasis, and NPC clinical stages (P < 0.05).
Our study demonstrated that OPN mRNA and protein overexpression in NPC may be important in the pathogenesis of the disease. It was strongly related to T stage, N stage and clinical stages of NPC, suggesting that OPN may be involved in NPC metastasis and progression.
研究骨桥蛋白（OPN）在人鼻咽癌（NPC）中的表达情况，并评估其在该疾病中的临床意义。
采用半定量逆转录聚合酶链反应（qRT-PCR）检测44例冷冻鼻咽癌组织和15例正常鼻咽上皮组织（NNET）样本中OPN mRNA的表达。通过免疫组织化学（IHC）检测67例石蜡包埋鼻咽癌组织和21例NNET样本中OPN蛋白的表达。此外，采用蛋白质印迹法（WB）检测12对鼻咽癌组织和癌旁组织（PCT）样本中OPN的表达。评估OPN表达与鼻咽癌临床病理参数之间的相关性。
三种不同方法均显示，鼻咽癌中OPN mRNA或蛋白的表达显著高于NNET或PCT（P值分别为0.000、0.001、0.000）。免疫组织化学检测后，88.1%（59/67）的鼻咽癌样本显示OPN染色呈强阳性或中度阳性，28.6%（6/21）的NNET样本显示OPN染色呈弱阳性。肿瘤细胞中OPN的染色主要定位于细胞质。鼻咽癌中OPN的表达与患者年龄或性别无关（P>0.05）,但与肿瘤大小、区域淋巴结转移及鼻咽癌临床分期显著相关（P<0.05）。
我们的研究表明，鼻咽癌中OPN mRNA和蛋白的过表达可能在该疾病的发病机制中起重要作用。它与鼻咽癌的T分期、N分期及临床分期密切相关，提示OPN可能参与鼻咽癌的转移和进展。
