RESUMEN
Cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) an inducible form of COX is frequently up-regulated in many human tumours. The expression of COX-2 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and its relationship to clinicopathological features were studied in Tunisian patients. COX-2 mRNA was detected in 91% of tumour tissues. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that COX-2 protein was strongly detected in tumour cells and the staining was mainly cytoplasmic. In contrast, COX-2 mRNA and protein were very low or undetectable in normal nasopharyngeal mucosa. Our result showed a significant association of COX-2 overexpression with the lymph node involvement, however, no correlation was observed with age, tumour stage, histological type and distant metastasis. Moreover, we showed that all tumour specimens co-overexpressed COX-2 and the EBV oncoprotein LMP1 corroborating the fact that LPM1 is known to induce COX-2. Altogether, our data suggests that the COX-2 is overexpressed in NPC biopsies and that is linked to the lymph node involvement.
Asunto(s)
Carcinoma de Células Escamosas/metabolismo , Ciclooxigenasa 2/metabolismo , Péptidos y Proteínas de Señalización Intracelular/metabolismo , Neoplasias Nasofaríngeas/metabolismo , Proteínas de Neoplasias/metabolismo , Proteínas Adaptadoras Transductoras de Señales , Adolescente , Adulto , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , Niño , Proteínas del Citoesqueleto , Femenino , Humanos , Proteínas con Dominio LIM , Metástasis Linfática , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Estadificación de Neoplasias , ARN Mensajero/metabolismo , Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa de Transcriptasa Inversa , Regulación hacia Arriba , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
A common polymorphism at codon 72 of TP53, the gene encoding the tumor suppressor protein p53, encodes either arginine or proline. These variants may be associated with tumor susceptibility since they interfere with the ability of TP53 to activate apoptosis, and might account for ethnic variation in cancer frequency. Using a polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism assay, we tested peripheral blood samples from 115 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and from 83 healthy individuals. Patients with NPC (Arg/Arg = 38.26%, Arg/Pro = 41.73%, and Pro/Pro = 20%) showed a significantly different percentage of the Pro/Pro genotype, compared with the control population (Arg/Arg = 39%, Arg/Pro = 54%, and Pro/Pro = 7%) (P = 0.0307). No significant difference was observed between TP53 codon 72 polymorphism and age, sex, histological grade, and metastasis. These results provide evidence that individuals with the Pro/Pro genotype have an increased risk of developing NPC in Tunisia.
