title: Nm23 expression in endometrial and cervical cancer: inverse correlation with lymph node involvement and myometrial invasion.
abstract: The expression of nm23 has been shown to correlate in some solid tumours with their metastatic potential and to be associated with a favourable prognosis in human breast cancer and melanoma. In breast and ovarian cancer nm23 expression is also correlated with lymph node involvement. We analysed the expression of nm23-H1 and -H2 in normal endometrium and in endometrial and cervical cancer by both Northern and Western blotting. Cellular localisation of Nm23-H1 was visualised by immunohistochemistry mostly in the cytoplasm. Both isoforms of Nm23 were present in all the samples analysed, and a clear direct correlation between Nm23-H1 and -H2 levels was evident. Median nm23-H2 levels were higher than than -H1 levels in both tissues. Cervical cancer patients with lymph node involvement were shown to have significantly lower protein levels of Nm23 (P < 0.007 for H1 and P < 0.009 for H2), and a similar trend was also evident in endometrial cancer. Furthermore, the degree of myometrial invasion in endometrial cancer patients was also inversely correlated with Nm23-H1 levels of expression (P < 0.003). Nm23 level may therefore be taken into consideration as a new marker in the prognostic characterisation and in the treatment planning of uterine tumour patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Catholic University, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Marone
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Scambia
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ferrandina
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Giannitelli
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Benedetti-Panici
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Iacovella
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Leone
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mancuso
mesh_terms: D015152:Blotting, Northern; D015153:Blotting, Western; D016889:Endometrial Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000473:pathology; D004717:Endometrium / Q000737:chemistry*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D020559:Monomeric GTP-Binding Proteins; D054778:NM23 Nucleoside Diphosphate Kinases; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D009701:Nucleoside-Diphosphate Kinase; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000032:analysis*; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D054778:NM23 Nucleoside Diphosphate Kinases; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; C517938:NME1 protein, human; D009701:Nucleoside-Diphosphate Kinase; D020559:Monomeric GTP-Binding Proteins