Guo Chang-Cheng, Zhang Xiao-Long, Yang Bin, Geng Jiang, Peng Bo, Zheng Jun-Hua
Department of Urology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai 200072, P.R. China.
Mol Med Rep. 2014 Jun;9(6):2367-73. doi: 10.3892/mmr.2014.2077. Epub 2014 Mar 27.
The expression patterns of the Dickkopf (Dkk) family of proteins varies in different cancers. In the present study, the expression levels of Dkk1 and Dkk3 were investigated in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) tissues. Dkk1 and Dkk3 serum levels were also examined in patients with ccRCC, and the association between clinicopathological features and Dkk levels was investigated. Serum Dkk1 and Dkk3 were quantified using ELISA in 64 patients with ccRCC and in 30 healthy individuals (controls). The expression levels of Dkk1 and Dkk3 were analyzed in tumor and adjacent normal tissues obtained from patients with ccRCC (n=20) using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry. The mean serum levels of Dkk1 and Dkk3 in the patients with ccRCC were significantly lower than those in the healthy controls. Furthermore, the serum Dkk1 levels were significantly lower at higher tumor‑node‑metastasis stages and tumor grades. qPCR, western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry revealed a significant decrease in the Dkk1 and Dkk3 mRNA and protein levels in the tumor tissues compared with the adjacent normal tissues. Consequently, Dkk1 and Dkk3 may present a novel molecular target for the diagnosis and therapeutic treatment of ccRCC.
Dickkopf（Dkk）蛋白家族的表达模式在不同癌症中有所不同。在本研究中，对透明细胞肾细胞癌（ccRCC）组织中Dkk1和Dkk3的表达水平进行了研究。还检测了ccRCC患者的Dkk1和Dkk3血清水平，并研究了临床病理特征与Dkk水平之间的关联。采用酶联免疫吸附测定（ELISA）对64例ccRCC患者和30名健康个体（对照组）的血清Dkk1和Dkk3进行定量。使用定量聚合酶链反应（qPCR）、蛋白质印迹分析和免疫组织化学对从20例ccRCC患者获得的肿瘤组织和相邻正常组织中Dkk1和Dkk3的表达水平进行分析。ccRCC患者血清Dkk1和Dkk3的平均水平显著低于健康对照组。此外，在肿瘤-淋巴结-转移分期较高和肿瘤分级较高时，血清Dkk1水平显著降低。qPCR、蛋白质印迹分析和免疫组织化学显示，与相邻正常组织相比，肿瘤组织中Dkk1和Dkk3的mRNA和蛋白质水平显著降低。因此，Dkk1和Dkk3可能为ccRCC的诊断和治疗提供新的分子靶点。
