Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Research Institute for Veterinary Science, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Vet Comp Oncol. 2024 Dec;22(4):490-499. doi: 10.1111/vco.12998. Epub 2024 Aug 12.
Phosphorylated signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (pSTAT3), which is related to anti-apoptosis, cellular proliferation, invasion and migration of tumours, has prognostic significance in malignant tumours in humans as well as in canine melanoma. However, the significance of pSTAT3 in canine liver tissues has not yet been evaluated. This study's objective was to compare its expression in canine normal, non-neoplastic hepatic disease and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues by immunohistochemical analysis. Furthermore, the association between pSTAT3 immunostaining and clinicopathological factors was investigated. Overall, 68 canine liver tissues, including 10 normal liver tissues, 30 non-neoplastic hepatic disease tissues and 28 HCC tissues were examined, revealing distinct differences in pSTAT3 immunostaining among the groups. (p < 0.001). Additionally, high pSTAT3 immunostaining was significantly associated with increased tumour size (5 > cm) (p = 0.041), and metastasis (p = 0.046). Furthermore, Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis revealed a correlation between high pSTAT3 immunostaining and poor disease-free survival (p = 0.013) and overall survival (p = 0.011). These findings suggest that overactivation of STAT3 is associated with poor prognosis in canine HCC. Therefore, pSTAT3 is considered a potential prognostic marker and therapeutic target for canine HCC.
磷酸化信号转导子和转录激活子 3（pSTAT3）与抗细胞凋亡、细胞增殖、肿瘤侵袭和迁移有关，在人类恶性肿瘤和犬黑色素瘤中具有预后意义。然而，pSTAT3 在犬肝脏组织中的意义尚未得到评估。本研究的目的是通过免疫组织化学分析比较其在犬正常、非肿瘤性肝疾病和肝细胞癌（HCC）组织中的表达。此外，还研究了 pSTAT3 免疫染色与临床病理因素之间的关系。总体而言，检查了 68 个犬肝脏组织，包括 10 个正常肝脏组织、30 个非肿瘤性肝病组织和 28 个 HCC 组织，结果显示各组之间的 pSTAT3 免疫染色存在明显差异（p<0.001）。此外，高 pSTAT3 免疫染色与肿瘤大小增大（5>cm）（p=0.041）和转移（p=0.046）显著相关。此外，Kaplan-Meier 生存曲线分析显示高 pSTAT3 免疫染色与无病生存（p=0.013）和总生存（p=0.011）不良之间存在相关性。这些发现表明 STAT3 的过度激活与犬 HCC 的不良预后相关。因此，pSTAT3 被认为是犬 HCC 的潜在预后标志物和治疗靶点。
