Department of Anatomy, Harbin Medical University, 194 Xuefu Road, Harbin, 150081, China.
J Gastrointest Surg. 2011 Nov;15(11):2001-10. doi: 10.1007/s11605-011-1627-2. Epub 2011 Jul 23.
BACKGROUND/AIMS: We combined two different signal pathways on transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1)-Smad and vascular endothelial growth factor C (VEGF-C)/VEGF receptors for exploring changes in pathway members and their influence on lymphangiogenesis and clinicopathological features.
Expression of TGF-β1, TGF-βRII, Smad4, VEGF-C, and VEGFR-3 was immunohistochemically evaluated in 147 colon cancer patients who were followed up for 5 years.
Lymphatic vessel density in colon cancer tissues was significantly higher than in normal colonic tissues. Smad4 expression negatively correlated with lymphatic vessel count and VEGF-C expression. VEGF-C expression positively correlated with lymphatic vessel count. Analysis using the Kaplan-Meier method indicated that patients with VEGF-C-positive tumors had significantly shorter overall survival and tumor-free survival time than those with VEGF-C-negative tumors. Patients with Smad4-negative tumors had significantly shorter overall survival and tumor-free survival time than those with Smad4-positive tumors.
Both Smad4 and VEGF-C are involved in lymphangiogenesis and lymphatic metastasis. Smad4 and VEGF-C expression may be clinically useful indicators for prognostic evaluation in colon cancer patients.
背景/目的：我们结合了转化生长因子 β1（TGF-β1）-Smad 和血管内皮生长因子 C（VEGF-C）/VEGF 受体这两条不同的信号通路，以探索通路成员的变化及其对淋巴管生成和临床病理特征的影响。
对 147 例结肠癌患者进行了 TGF-β1、TGF-βRII、Smad4、VEGF-C 和 VEGFR-3 的免疫组织化学评估，并随访 5 年。
结肠癌组织中的淋巴管密度明显高于正常结肠组织。Smad4 的表达与淋巴管计数呈负相关，而 VEGF-C 的表达与淋巴管计数呈正相关。Kaplan-Meier 分析表明，VEGF-C 阳性肿瘤患者的总生存时间和无瘤生存时间明显短于 VEGF-C 阴性肿瘤患者。Smad4 阴性肿瘤患者的总生存时间和无瘤生存时间明显短于 Smad4 阳性肿瘤患者。
Smad4 和 VEGF-C 均参与淋巴管生成和淋巴转移。Smad4 和 VEGF-C 的表达可能是结肠癌患者预后评估的临床有用指标。
