Department of Ultrasound, the First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, 28 Fuxing Road, Beijing, 100853, China.
Department of Radiology, the First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, 28 Fuxing Road, Beijing, 100853, China.
BMC Cancer. 2021 Dec 15;21(1):1336. doi: 10.1186/s12885-021-09036-4.
Shear wave elastography can evaluate tissue stiffness. Previous studies showed that the elasticity characteristics of breast lesions were related to the components of extracellular matrix which was regulated by transforming growth factor beta 1(TGF-β1) directly or indirectly. However, the correlation of the expression level of TGF-β1, its signal molecules and elasticity characteristics of breast lesions have rarely been reported. The purpose of this study was to investigate the correlation between the expression level of TGF-β1, its signal molecules, and the elasticity characteristics of breast lesions.
135 breast lesions in 130 patients were included. Elasticity parameters, including elasticity modulus, the elasticity ratio, the "stiff rim sign", were recorded before biopsy and surgical excision. The expression levels of TGF-β1 and its signal molecules, including Smad2/3, Erk1/2, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), c-Jun N-terminal kinase 2 (JNK2), phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K), and protein kinase B (PKB/AKT) were detected by immunohistochemistry. The diagnostic performance of the expression level of those molecules and their correlation with the elasticity characteristics were analyzed.
Elasticity parameters and the expression levels of TGF- β1 and its signal molecules of benign lesions were lower than those of malignant lesions (P<0.0001). The expression levels of TGF- β1 and its signal molecules were correlated with elasticity parameters. The expression levels of TGF- β1 and its signal molecules in lesions with "stiff rim sign" were higher than those without "stiff rim sign" (P<0.05). And the expression levels of Smad2/3, Erk1/2, p38 MAPK, JNK2, PI3K and AKT were correlated with that of TGF- β1. The area under the curve for receiver operator characteristic curve of TGF-β1 and its signal molecules in the differentiation of malignant and benign breast lesions ranged from 0.920-0.960.
The expression levels of TGF-β1, its signal molecules of breast lesions showed good diagnostic performance and were correlated with the elasticity parameters. The expression levels of signal molecules were correlated with that of TGF- β1, which speculated that TGF- β1 might play an important role in the regulation of breast lesion elasticity parameters and multiple signal molecule expressions.
剪切波弹性成像可评估组织硬度。既往研究表明，乳腺病变的弹性特征与细胞外基质成分有关，该成分受转化生长因子-β1（TGF-β1）直接或间接调控。然而，TGF-β1及其信号分子的表达水平与乳腺病变弹性特征之间的相关性鲜有报道。本研究旨在探讨 TGF-β1 及其信号分子的表达水平与乳腺病变弹性特征之间的相关性。
纳入 130 例患者的 135 个乳腺病变。在活检和手术切除前记录弹性参数，包括弹性模量、弹性比、“硬边征”。采用免疫组化法检测 TGF-β1 及其信号分子，包括 Smad2/3、Erk1/2、p38 丝裂原活化蛋白激酶（p38 MAPK）、c-Jun N 末端激酶 2（JNK2）、磷酸肌醇 3-激酶（PI3K）和蛋白激酶 B（PKB/AKT）的表达水平。分析这些分子的表达水平与弹性特征的诊断性能及其相关性。
良性病变的弹性参数以及 TGF-β1 及其信号分子的表达水平均低于恶性病变（P<0.0001）。TGF-β1 及其信号分子的表达水平与弹性参数相关。具有“硬边征”的病变 TGF-β1 及其信号分子的表达水平高于不具有“硬边征”的病变（P<0.05）。Smad2/3、Erk1/2、p38 MAPK、JNK2、PI3K 和 AKT 的表达水平与 TGF-β1 的表达水平相关。TGF-β1 及其信号分子鉴别良恶性乳腺病变的受试者工作特征曲线下面积为 0.920-0.960。
乳腺病变中 TGF-β1 及其信号分子的表达水平具有良好的诊断性能，并与弹性参数相关。信号分子的表达水平与 TGF-β1 相关，推测 TGF-β1 可能在调节乳腺病变弹性参数和多种信号分子表达中发挥重要作用。
