title: Immunohistochemical evaluation of STAT3-p-tyr705 expression in feline mammary gland tumours and correlation with histologic grade.
abstract: STAT3 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 3) is a cytoplasmic transcription factor that plays a role in the G1 to S phase cell-cycle transition and is induced by cytokines and growth factors. The expression of STAT3 phosphorylated on tyrosine 705 (STAT3-p-tyr705) in normal, hyperplastic and neoplastic feline mammary gland tissue was assessed by immunohistochemistry in 45 cats. The samples included 4 normal mammary non-lactating tissues, 9 hyperplastic tissues (5 fibroepithelial hyperplasia and 4 lobular epithelial hyperplasia), 2 benign tumours (1 complex adenoma, and 1 simple adenoma), and 30 carcinomas (18 simple tubular papillary, 6 simple tubular, 2 simple solid, 3 cribriform, and 1 adenosquamous carcinoma). For immunohistochemistry, tissue sections were incubated with an anti-STAT3-p-tyr705 monoclonal antibody and visualized with EnVision-DAB polymer. STAT3-p-tyr705 positivity was quantified in a semi-quantitative manner. All positive samples showed cytoplasmic and/or nuclear positivity. Normal non-lactating mammary tissue showed a low number of positive cells, similar to hyperplastic tissue. In neoplastic tissues, a high number of positive cells with a moderate to intense reaction was observed. Moreover, a correlation was observed between nuclear positivity for STAT3-p-tyr705 and histologic grade (P=0.013; r=0.447), tubular formation (P=0.043; r=0.820), and mitotic activity (P<0.0001; r=0.689). In contrast, no such correlations were observed for cytoplasmic reactivity of STAT3-p-tyr705. A significant difference was observed between malignant lesions and hyperplasia with regards to expression of STAT3-p-tyr 705 in the cytoplasm (P=0.008; U=59.00) and nuclei (P=0.002; U=47.00). These results confirm previous our data and reinforce the potential role of STAT3 in malignancy as reported for human breast cancer and other sporadic tumours.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Comparative Pathology and Veterinary Hygiene School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Padua, Agripolis, Legnaro, Italy. claudio.petterino@unipd.it
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Petterino
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ratto
authors.forename: Giorgia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Podestà
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Drigo
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pellegrino
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D002415:Cats; D005260:Female; D007150:Immunohistochemistry / Q000662:veterinary; D015674:Mammary Neoplasms, Animal / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D010766:Phosphorylation; D050796:STAT3 Transcription Factor / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D014443:Tyrosine / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D050796:STAT3 Transcription Factor; D014443:Tyrosine