Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Zhuji Affiliated Hospital of Shaoxing University, NO. 9 Jianmin Road, Taozhu Streets, Zhuji, Zhejiang, China.
Ir J Med Sci. 2022 Apr;191(2):651-658. doi: 10.1007/s11845-021-02523-4. Epub 2021 Mar 23.
Aquaporin 9 (AQP9) is recognized as a key regulator in several cancers, whereas little is known about its clinical implication in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Thus, we aimed to explore AQP9 expression and its relationship with clinical features, prognosis in NSCLC patients.
One hundred ninety-eight NSCLC patients who received resection were retrospectively enrolled. This study contained two cohorts: in cohort A, AQP9 protein expression (from formalin fixed paraffin embedded tumor and paired adjacent tissue specimens) in 198 patients was detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC). In cohort B, AQP9 mRNA expression (from fresh-frozen tumor and paired adjacent tissues) in 108 patients (out of 198 patients) was detected by RT-qPCR.
In cohort A, increased AQP9 IHC score and greater proportion of AQP9 protein high expression cases were shown in tumor tissue than adjacent tissue (both P < 0.001). Tumor AQP9 protein high expression correlated with lymph node (LYN) metastasis (P = 0.002) and raised TNM stage (P = 0.012). Interestingly, tumor AQP9 protein high expression related to worse disease-free survival (DFS) (P = 0.002) and overall survival (OS) (P = 0.026). In cohort B, AQP9 mRNA expression in tumor tissue was increased than adjacent tissue (P < 0.001), and tumor AQP9 mRNA high expression linked to LYN metastasis (P = 0.024) and increased TNM stage (P = 0.032) as well; tumor AQP9 mRNA high expression was related to shorter DFS (P = 0.009), and it presented with a trend to be correlated with worse OS (P = 0.054), but without statistical significance.
AQP9 serves as a potential indicator for monitoring disease progression and prognostication in NSCLC patients.
水通道蛋白 9（AQP9）被认为是几种癌症的关键调节因子，而其在非小细胞肺癌（NSCLC）中的临床意义知之甚少。因此，我们旨在探讨 AQP9 的表达及其与 NSCLC 患者临床特征和预后的关系。
回顾性纳入 198 例接受切除术的 NSCLC 患者。本研究包含两个队列：在队列 A 中，通过免疫组织化学（IHC）检测 198 例患者的福尔马林固定石蜡包埋肿瘤和配对的相邻组织标本中的 AQP9 蛋白表达。在队列 B 中，通过 RT-qPCR 检测 108 例（198 例中的）新鲜冷冻肿瘤和配对的相邻组织中的 AQP9 mRNA 表达。
在队列 A 中，肿瘤组织中 AQP9 IHC 评分增加和 AQP9 蛋白高表达病例的比例均高于相邻组织（均 P<0.001）。肿瘤 AQP9 蛋白高表达与淋巴结（LYN）转移（P=0.002）和升高的 TNM 分期（P=0.012）相关。有趣的是，肿瘤 AQP9 蛋白高表达与较差的无病生存（DFS）（P=0.002）和总生存（OS）（P=0.026）相关。在队列 B 中，肿瘤组织中的 AQP9 mRNA 表达高于相邻组织（P<0.001），肿瘤 AQP9 mRNA 高表达与 LYN 转移（P=0.024）和升高的 TNM 分期相关（P=0.032）；肿瘤 AQP9 mRNA 高表达与较短的 DFS 相关（P=0.009），并且有与 OS 较差相关的趋势（P=0.054），但无统计学意义。
AQP9 可作为监测 NSCLC 患者疾病进展和预后的潜在指标。
