The clinical significance of expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen(PCNA) in prostatic carcinoma: the correlative study with glandular differentiation and flow cytometric DNA analysis

Cheon, Jun; Kim, Han Kyeum; Kim, In Sun; Koh, Sung Kun

Abstract

The expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) was assessed immunohistochemically in I8 patients with benign glandular hyperplasia (BPH) and 40 patients with prostatic carcinoma with anti-PCNA, cyclin monoclonal antibody. using routinely processed tissue sections without interfering with histopathological diagnosis. The PCNA expression rates were compared with flow cytometric DNA analysis in 29 patients and Gleason histologic grade in 40 patients with prostatic carcinoma. In BPH tissues basal cells show positivities for PCNA and secretory cells show essential positive reaction with anti-PCNA/cyclin monoclonal antibody. In prostatic carcinoma the PCNA expression rate ranged from 3.70% to 48. 53% (mean value 22.36%1. Prostatic carcinoma with Gleason grade 5 showed the highest PCNA expression rate (mean value 32.22%) and carcinoma with Gleason grade l showed the lowest PCNA expression rate (mean value 3.TS%). There were statistically significant differences of PCNA expression rate according to Gleason grades (p=0.001. Kruskal-Wallis test). When DNA ploidy was analyzed to assess the relationship to other tumor variables DNA aneuploid group was associated with higher Gleason grade and higher PCNA expression rate than diploid group. but the differences were statistically insignificant. The DNA aneuploid group had higher percentage of S-phase cells (S-phase Fraction) by flow cytometry than diploid group (mean value l3.48 =6 in diploid group and 19.78% in aneuploid group and this difference was statistically significant (p=0.01. Mann-Whitney test). From the above results. it is clear that PCNA expression is useful as an nuclear antigenic marker of cellular proliferation and offers an opportunity for analyzing cell kinetics successfully in prostatic carcinoma. It will be merited as a means to detect prostatic carcinomas with high potential for invasion. metastasis and clinical progression.