The relationship of tryptase- and chymase-positive mast cells to angiogenesis in stage I non-small cell lung cancer.
OBJECTIVE
There are two types of human mast cells, tryptase-positive mast cells (MC(T)) and tryptase- and chymase-positive mast cells (MC(TC)). Although MC(T) have been reported to be related to the generation of angiogenesis, little is known about the involvement of MC(TC) in tumor angiogenesis. In this study, to clarify the relationship between MC(TC) and lung cancer angiogenesis, we evaluated MC(TC), MC(T), and microvessel counts in normal, border, and central lung cancer regions.


METHODS
Tumor sections from 32 cases of adenocarcinoma and 13 cases of squamous cell carcinoma were immunostained for chymase to evaluate MC(TC), tryptase to evaluate MC(T,) and CD34 to evaluate microvessel counts.


RESULTS
Both MC(TC) and MC(T) counts in the border lung cancer region were significantly higher than in the central region, and the MC(TC) and MC(T) counts in the central region were significantly higher than those in the normal regions. The microvessel counts in the border region were higher than those in the central region. The ratio of MC(TC) to MC(T) in the border region, but not in the central region, was significantly higher than that in the normal region. In the border region, significant correlations not only between MC(T) and microvessel count, but also between MC(TC) and microvessel count were observed. In the central region, a significant correlation between MC(TC) and the microvessel count was observed, but there was no significant correlation between MC(T) and the microvessel count.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings suggest that MC(TC) may be involved in the pathogenesis of angiogenesis in lung cancer.
Ibaraki
Toshihiko
T
Department of Pharmacology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki City, Osaka 569-8686, Japan.
Muramatsu
Michiko
M
Takai
Shinji
S
Jin
Denan
D
Maruyama
Hiroshi
H
Orino
Tatsuhiko
T
Katsumata
Takahiro
T
Miyazaki
Mizuo
M
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000098:blood supply; D018952:Antigens, CD34 / Q000032:analysis; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000098:blood supply*; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000098:blood supply / Q000473:pathology; D002452:Cell Count; D053818:Chymases; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry / Q000379:methods; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000098:blood supply*; D008297:Male; D008407:Mast Cells / Q000201:enzymology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic / Q000473:pathology*; D012697:Serine Endopeptidases / Q000378:metabolism*; D053802:Tryptases
D018952:Antigens, CD34; D012697:Serine Endopeptidases; D053818:Chymases; D053802:Tryptases