Research
HtrA1 expression associated with the occurrence and development of esophageal cancer
1 Department of Interventional Radiology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, No. 150, Haping Rd, Harbin, 150040, China
2 Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical College, Guangzhou, China
3 Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Disease & China State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou, China
4 State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Guangzhou, China
5 Department of Thoracic Surgery, Cancer Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
World Journal of Surgical Oncology 2012, 10:179 doi:10.1186/1477-7819-10-179
Published: 30 August 2012Abstract
Background
The purposes of this study were to measure both the mRNA and protein expression levels of high-temperature requirement serine peptidase 1 (HtrA1) in human esophageal cancer tissues and their adjacent, comparatively normal esophageal tissues.
Methods
The expression levels of HtrA1 mRNA and protein in both tissue types were measured by semi-quantitative RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) and Western blotting. The clinical and pathological correlation between HtrA1 expression levels and the occurrence and development of esophageal cancer was analyzed.
Results
The expression levels of HtrA1 mRNA and protein in esophageal carcinoma were significantly lower than the levels expressed in their adjacent normal esophageal tissue (p < 0.05). The more highly undifferentiated esophageal tumor cells expressed lower HtrA1 mRNA and protein expression levels (p < 0.05). Patients with tumors in early pathological stages (I-II) had significantly higher HtrA1 mRNA and protein expression levels than did patients with tumors in mid-to-late pathological stages (III-IV) (p < 0.05). Patients with positive lymph node metastasis had significantly lower HtrA1 mRNA and protein expression levels than did patients with lymph node-negative disease (p < 0.05).
Conclusions
HtrA1 expression is associated with the occurrence and development of esophageal cancer.
