Chonnam Med J.  2005 Apr;41(1):82-88.

Quantitative Measurement of Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha Gene Expression in Prostate Cancer

• Kwon DD
• Im CM
• Lee HS
• Kang TW
• Oh BR
• Park KS
• Ryu SB
• Park YI

Abstract

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) is involved in oncogenesis of several cancers. This study was designed to test the hypothesis that enhanced expression of TNF-alpha is associated with prostate cancer. mRNA expressions of TNF-alpha in normal (PrEC) and prostate cancer cell lines (ALVA-41, DU-145, and TSU-Pr1), and tissues (30 benign prostate hyperplasia and 42 prostate cancer) were analyzed by Northern blot and/or quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Protein expression was determined by immunohistochemistry. expression rates of TNF-alpha mRNA in the cell lines were as follows: TSU-Pr1> DU 145> ALVA-41> PrEC. The relative TNF-alpha mRNA expression was significantly higher in the cancer samples (2.74x10-8+/-7.5x410-8) than in the BPH tissues (1.83x10-10+/-1.43x10-10) (p <0.001). TNF-alpha mRNA expression level was correlated with the grade of the tumor (p <0.05), but not with the stage. Immunohistochemical analysis demonstrated that TNF-alpha was localized to cytoplasm of tumor cell, and their intensity reflected the mRNA expression in these tissues. These results indicate that enhanced expression of TNF-alpha activity occur during carcinogenesis in prostate cancers and support the involvement of TNF-alpha in the development of prostate cancer.

Keyword

Prostate cancer; Tumor necrosis factor-alpha; Carcinogenesis; Real-time polymerase chain reaction

MeSH Terms

Blotting, Northern
Carcinogenesis
Cell Line
Cytoplasm
Gene Expression*
Hyperplasia
Immunohistochemistry
Prostate*
Prostatic Neoplasms*
Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
RNA, Messenger
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha*
RNA, Messenger
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha