title: Clinical significance of class III beta-tubulin expression and its predictive value for resistance to docetaxel-based chemotherapy in gastric cancer.
abstract: Docetaxel, one of the most effective anticancer drugs for gastric cancer, targets beta-tubulin, the major protein in mitotic spindles. Eight isotypes of beta-tubulin, with tissue and organ-specific expression, have been identified in mammalian cells. We examined class III beta-tubulin expression in gastric cancer and assessed its relationship with sensitivity to docetaxel-based chemotherapy. A total of 115 paraffin-embedded gastric tumors were analyzed by immunohistochemistry for class III beta-tubulin expression. Twenty patients with advanced gastric cancer received preoperative docetaxel-based chemotherapy. Their biopsied specimens, obtained by endoscopy before chemotherapy were examined for class III beta-tubulin expression. The relationship between expression and chemosensitivity was assessed. Forty-two (36.4%) of 115 cases were confirmed to be positive for class III beta-tubulin expression. There was no association between clinicopathological status and prognosis. Among the patients positive for class III beta-tubulin expression, only 16.7% showed no response to chemotherapy, while 64.3% responded to the chemotherapy in the negative group. Our results suggest that class III beta-tubulin is a simple and useful predictive marker for the clinical response to docetaxel-based chemotherapy in gastric cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery and Clinical Oncology, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan.
authors.forename: Naomi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Urano
authors.forename: Yoshiyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Fujiwara
authors.forename: Yuichiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Doki
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Yasuo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Miyoshi
authors.forename: Shinzaburo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Noguchi
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Miyata
authors.forename: Shuji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Takiguchi
authors.forename: Takushi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yasuda
authors.forename: Masahiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yano
authors.forename: Morito
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Monden
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001706:Biopsy; D000077143:Docetaxel; D019008:Drug Resistance, Neoplasm; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D043823:Taxoids / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014404:Tubulin / Q000032:analysis / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic; C498585:TUBB3 protein, human; D043823:Taxoids; D014404:Tubulin; D000077143:Docetaxel