Distribution of EphB4 and EphrinB2 in normal and malignant urogenital tissue.
OBJECTIVE
Ephrin (Eph) receptors are receptor tyrosine kinases; both EphrinB2, as a ligand, and EphB4, as a receptor, are involved in angiogenesis. EphrinB2 is expressed on arteries and EphB4, a specific receptor for EphrinB2, is expressed on veins. It is unknown whether involvement of arteries and veins in tumor angiogenesis is distinctive. Here we investigated their distribution in normal and malignant tissue of the urogenital tract.


METHODS
Five-micrometer-thick paraffin sections from nontumoral and tumoral tissues of kidney (n = 12), bladder (n = 33), and prostate (n = 20) were immunoreacted with antisera against EphB4 and EphrinB2 using the avidin-biotin-peroxidase complex technique. Comparisons of EphB4 and EphrinB2 stained arterial and venous vessels in the nontumoral and tumoral sections were evaluated in a semiquantitative analysis as frequency of the vessels in a predetermined tumor area counted under light microscopy.


RESULTS
Expression of EphrinB2 in arterial and EphB4 in venous endothelium was significantly greater in tumoral sections compared with nontumoral sections. No statistically significant correlation in comparing the labeling patterns for EphrinB2 with the labeling patterns for EphB4 was observed in nontumoral as well as tumoral sections.


CONCLUSIONS
The high expression of EphrinB2 in arterial and EphB4 in venous endothelium of urogenital tract tumors might contribute to their involvement in the progression of tumor angiogenesis. The relation between arteries and veins in the normal and tumor tissues is unchanged.
Ozgür
Enver
E
Department of Urology, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany. enver.oezguer@uk-koeln.de
Heidenreich
Axel
A
Dagtekin
Oguzhan
O
Engelmann
Udo
U
Bloch
Wilhelm
W
D002295:Carcinoma, Transitional Cell / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000378:metabolism; D036388:Ephrin-B2 / Q000378:metabolism*; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D007668:Kidney / Q000378:metabolism; D007680:Kidney Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D011379:Prognosis; D011467:Prostate / Q000378:metabolism; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D036224:Receptor, EphB4 / Q000378:metabolism*; D001743:Urinary Bladder / Q000378:metabolism; D001749:Urinary Bladder Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology
D036388:Ephrin-B2; D036224:Receptor, EphB4