E-cadherin and alpha-catenin expression during tumor progression of cervical carcinoma.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of this study was to determine whether a relationship between the E-caherin molecule and the E-cadherin-associated cytoplasmic molecule, alpha-catenin, could provide additional information in the neoplastic progression of cervical cancer.


METHODS
In this study we investigated by immunohistochemistry E-cadherin (E-cad) and alpha-catenin (alpha-cat) expression in 57 cervical biopsy samples representative of normal exocervical epithelium, viral (human papillomavirus (HPV) infection) and dysplastic lesions (low- and high-grade lesions), and invasive squamous cell carcinoma. The presence of immunostaining and the pattern of distribution of these molecules were correlated with the histological diagnosis (normal cervical epithelium vs HPV, cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), and invasive carcinoma).


RESULTS
The correlation between alpha-cat expression and the histological diagnosis was statistically significant (chi2 test, P < 0.0077); moreover, E-cad and alpha-cat distributions were significantly correlated with the histological classification (P < 0.0001 and P < 0.0043, respectively).


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest that not only E-cad but also alpha-cat are associated with the loss of differentiation in CIN and squamous cell carcinomas; thus the coexpression of E-cad and alpha-cat may represent a discriminant of malignant potential and could provide an additional criterion to define high-grade CIN.
Carico
E
E
IIa Facolta Medicina e Chirurgia La Sapienza, IIa Scuola di Specializzazione Oncologia, Rome, Italy.
Atlante
M
M
Bucci
B
B
Nofroni
I
I
Vecchione
A
A
D015820:Cadherins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D003593:Cytoplasm / Q000378:metabolism; D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D018450:Disease Progression; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D015603:Keratinocytes / Q000378:metabolism; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D051178:alpha Catenin; D002578:Uterine Cervical Dysplasia / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology
C495273:CTNNA1 protein, human; D015820:Cadherins; D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins; D051178:alpha Catenin