title: Zonula occludens-1 and Her-2/neu expression in invasive breast carcinoma.
abstract: A subset of breast carcinomas shows unexplained overexpression of HER-2/neu protein without HER-2/neu gene amplification. These tumors are often scored 2+ by immunohistochemistry (DAKO HercepTest). In vitro, Zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1), a tight junction protein, can upregulate HER-2/neu expression by sequestering a repressor of the HER-2/neu gene promoter. To assess this relation in vivo, we examined the expression of ZO-1 in 2 series of breast carcinomas. In group 1, 35 invasive breast carcinomas previously scored by HercepTest for HER-2/neu status (negative [n = 12], 2+ [n = 13], 3+ [n = 10]) were examined by immunohistochemistry for expression of ZO-1. ZO-1 expression was then correlated with HER-2/neu expression status. Twenty-four of 35 carcinomas (69%) were positive for ZO-1 expression. Frequency of ZO-1 expression did not differ between HER-2/neu-negative carcinomas (67%) and 2+ positive carcinomas (77%). Carcinomas with 3+ HER-2/neu expression were less commonly positive for ZO-1 (60%), but this difference was not significant. Twenty tumors contained ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS); 18 of 20 DCIS (90%) were positive for ZO-1. Interestingly, in those tumors with ZO-1-positive DCIS, 4 of 18 (22%) were negative for ZO-1 expression in the invasive tumor. In group 2, 31 of 42 (74%) fluorescent in situ hybridization-nonamplified breast carcinomas showed ZO-1 expression, also with no significant difference in frequency between HER-2/neu-positive (by immunohistochemistry) and negative cases. ZO-1 expression does not correlate with HER-2/neu expression in breast carcinomas. Other causes of HER-2/neu protein overexpression should be sought in cases without HER-2/neu gene amplification.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA. jbell3@emory.edu
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bell
authors.forename: Shaun
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Walsh
authors.forename: Asma
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nusrat
authors.forename: Cynthia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cohen
mesh_terms: D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D018270:Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000502:physiology; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D010750:Phosphoproteins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000502:physiology; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000032:analysis* / Q000096:biosynthesis; D019108:Tight Junctions / Q000473:pathology; D062826:Zonula Occludens-1 Protein
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; D010750:Phosphoproteins; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases; D062826:Zonula Occludens-1 Protein; C569042:TJP1 protein, human