Korean J Pathol.  2012 Aug;46(4):341-348. 10.4132/KoreanJPathol.2012.46.4.341.

Loss of E-cadherin and Acquisition of Vimentin in Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition are Noble Indicators of Uterine Cervix Cancer Progression

• Myong NH

• KMID: 1439869
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4132/KoreanJPathol.2012.46.4.341

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) has been known to play a key role in the stromal invasion of carcinoma in situ (CIS) lesion. Loss of E-cadherin and acquisition of vimentin are two critical steps in EMT, that are induced by Snail-1 upregulation associated with overexpression of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). However, roles of EMT-related proteins in human cervical tissues have not been fully elucidated. In this study, we investigated the immunoexpressions of EMT-related proteins in CIS, microinvasive squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), and invasive SCC to demonstrate their key roles in tumor progression.
METHODS
Eighty one CIS, 17 microinvasive, and 21 invasive SCC cases were immunostained with primary antibodies for Snail-1, EGFR, E-cadherin, and vimentin on paraffin-embedded tissue microarray blocks.
RESULTS
EGFR and Snail-1 proteins were highly expressed but the levels were not significantly different between the three groups. However, loss of E-cadherin and acquisition of vimentin were proven to occur significantly higher in microinvasive and invasive SCC cases than in CIS.
CONCLUSIONS
E-cadherin and vimentin were found to be two useful indicators of EMT in evaluating stromal invasion of CIS. However, it was not demonstrated for Snail-1 and EGFR proteins to play any key role in the progression of cervix cancer.

Keyword

Cadherins; Vimentin; Epithelial-mesenchymal transition; Uterine cervical neoplasms

MeSH Terms

Antibodies
Cadherins
Carcinoma in Situ
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell
Cervix Uteri
Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition
Female
Humans
Proteins
Receptor, Epidermal Growth Factor
Up-Regulation
Uterine Cervical Neoplasms
Vimentin
Antibodies
Cadherins
Proteins
Receptor, Epidermal Growth Factor
Vimentin