【Abstract】Objective To investigate whether liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) causes dissemination of liver tumor cells into blood circulation. Methods Fourteen patients with HCC, but without evidences of metastasis, were enrolled for the study. Blood samples of peripheral blood before skin incision and after abdominal wall suture, and of hepatic venous blood and portal venous blood after liver parenchyma dissection, were obtained. AFPmRNA was detected by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assays, the change of the level of its expression during operation was assessed by semi-quantitative analysis. Results The rate of its expression before and after operation in peripheral blood, and during operation in portal venous blood and in hepatic venous was 42.9%, 35.7%, 42.9% and 57.1% respectively. There were no differences between them. However, the level of its expression in hepatic venous blood was significantly higher than others (P<0.05). Conclusion Liver resection for HCC induces releases of cells from the liver, probably including tumor cells, into blood circulation.
Objective To investigate the expression of ADAM9 in breast cancer and its clinical significance. Methods The expressions of ADAM9 in normal breast tissues and breast cancer tissues were detected by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry, and whose relationship with clinicopathologic features was analyzed. Results The expression of ADAM9 mRNA increased in the breast cancer tissues, but which was not detected in the normal breast tissues. The expression of ADAM9 protein in the breast cancer tissues was significantly higher than that in the normal breast tissues (Plt;0.05), and which in the metastatic lymph nodes was significantly higher than that in the negative lymph nodes or corresponding primary lesions (Plt;0.05). The expression of ADAM9 in the breast cancer tissues was correlated with the lymph node metastasis and histological grade (Plt;0.05). Conclusion ADAM9 is overexpressed in the breast cancer tissues, which might involve in the pathological progression of breast cancer.
【Abstract】 Objective To investigate the expression and significance of tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) receptors in pancreatic cancer. Methods Thirty-two samples of pancreatic cancer tissue were collected from year 2002 to 2004. All of them were verified by histopathology and there were 9 cases of well-differentiated, 12 of moderately differentiated, and 11 of poorly differentiated, in which 12 cases were in the stage of Ⅰor Ⅱand 20 in the stage of Ⅲ or Ⅳ according to the TNM staging method. Eighteen normal pancreatic tissues were used as control group. The expressions of TRAIL receptors (death receptor 4, death receptor 5, decoy receptor 4 and decoy receptor 5) mRNA were assayed by semi-quantitive reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in the pancreatic cancer tissues and the normal pancreatic tissues. Results The expressions of death receptor 4 (DR4) and death receptor 5 (DR5) were detected in all the pancreatic cancer tissues and the normal pancreatic tissues and the levels of DR4 and DR5 were significantly higher than those of the normal pancreatic tissues (P<0.01). Decoy receptor 1 (DcR1) and decoy receptor 2 (DcR2) were also expressed in normal pancreatic tissues, whereas DcR1 and DcR2 were only expressed in 18 and 20 pancreatic cancer tissues, respectively. However, there were no significant difference of the expression of DcR1 and DcR2 between the pancreatic cancer tissues and the normal pancreatic tissues (Pgt;0.05). The expression level of DR5 in pancreatic cancer tissue was correlated with tumor differentiation and clinical stage, and the levels in stage Ⅲ and stage Ⅳwere significantly lower than those of stageⅠand stageⅡ(P<0.05). The expressions of DR4, DcR1 and DcR2 were not correlated with tumor differentiation and clinical stage (Pgt;0.05). Conclusion ①The expression of TRAIL receptors in pancreatic cancer tissues is prevalent, but the types of receptors expressed in different tissues were also different. High expression of death receptors may play an important role in TRAIL recptors regulated pancreatic cancer apoptosis. ②The expression of DR5 is correlated with the differentiation degree of pancreatic cancer cell and clinical stage of tumor. The expressions of DR4, DcR1 and DcR2 should not be considered as related indexes of differentiation degree or clinical stage of pancreatic cancer.