Department of Urology, Theodor Bilharz Research Institute, Kornaish El Nile, Warrak El-Hadar, Imbaba, P.O. 30, Giza, 12411, Egypt.
Department of Electron Microscopy, Theodor Bilharz Research Institute, Kornaish El Nile, Warrak El-Hadar, Imbaba, P.O. 30, Giza, 12411, Egypt.
Sci Rep. 2023 Apr 15;13(1):6179. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-33282-0.
Recurrence and progression rates vary widely among different histological subtypes of bladder cancer (BC). Normal-appearing mucosa in non-muscle invasive bladder cancer and muscle-invasive bladder cancer in cystoscopy and histopathology is a factor in staging and treatment. Telocytes (TCs) are spindle-shaped cells that connect with other cell types allowing communication though cytoskeletal signaling. They are involved in tissue regeneration and pathogenesis of diseases and cancer. In this study, 12 normal-appearing tissues from urinary bladder with BC, both invasive and non-invasive were evaluated in patients who had either trans-urethral resection of bladder tumor or cystectomy. In each case, cystoscopy, intraoperative inspection, and histopathology all confirmed the absence of cancerous elements. Five patients with neurogenic bladder were used as a control group. Immunohistochemistry revealed that c-Kit + cells were intensively distributed in bladder layers from BC samples, while they were seldom detected in the control group. Ultrastructural examination of reprocessed tissue showed an intense distribution of TCs and telopodes in the submucosa and between smooth muscle cells in BC. Telopodes were numerous, arborizing, and intercommunicating. Whereas TCs and telopodes were scarce in the neurogenic bladder. Also, cancerous tissue had the highest expression level of ezrin protein, and this level gradually decreased as we moved away from the tumor. Our finding of TCs number in normal-appearing tissues in conjunction with ezrin expression may compete invasiveness and possibly a trail to reduce recurrence rates.
膀胱癌（BC）的不同组织学亚型的复发和进展率差异很大。非肌肉浸润性膀胱癌和肌肉浸润性膀胱癌在膀胱镜和组织病理学中表现正常的粘膜是分期和治疗的一个因素。 细长细胞（TCs）是与其他细胞类型相连的梭形细胞，通过细胞骨架信号进行通讯。它们参与组织再生和疾病及癌症的发病机制。在这项研究中，对 12 例有 BC 的正常外观膀胱组织进行了评估，这些组织既有侵袭性的也有非侵袭性的，患者分别接受了经尿道膀胱肿瘤切除术或膀胱切除术。在每种情况下，膀胱镜检查、术中检查和组织病理学均证实没有癌性成分。 5 例神经源性膀胱患者作为对照组。免疫组织化学显示，c-Kit+细胞在 BC 样本的膀胱层中密集分布，而在对照组中很少检测到。对重新处理的组织进行超微结构检查显示，TCs 和 telopodes 在 BC 的黏膜下层和平滑肌细胞之间密集分布。telopodes 数量众多，呈树枝状，相互连通。而 TCs 和 telopodes 在神经源性膀胱中则很少。此外，癌组织的 ezrin 蛋白表达水平最高，随着远离肿瘤，表达水平逐渐降低。我们发现正常外观组织中的 TCs 数量与 ezrin 表达的关系可能与侵袭性有关，并且可能是降低复发率的一个线索。
