BAG3 protein delocalisation in prostate carcinoma.
Despite the progressive increase of early diagnosis, a subset of prostate cancers show a metastasizing and lethal course, not always predictable upon the traditional prognostic parameters. The object of this study was to investigate the role of the survival co-chaperone protein BAG3 as a new prognostic marker for prostate cancer. BAG3 was detected by immunohistochemistry in 55 specimens of surgically removed prostate carcinomas and in 15 surgical specimens of non-neoplastic prostate tissues. Results were compared with clinic-pathological data and outcome of patients and statistically evaluated. BAG3 resulted expressed in all the cases: Non-neoplastic prostate tissue showed a cytoplasmatic staining with apical reinforcement, a finding which appears consistent with the reported connection of the protein with the membrane focal cell-adhesion complexes. In prostate carcinomas, BAG3 showed a progressive decrease of the expression level from well- to low-differentiated carcinoma, coupled with the loss of polarisation of the signal in metastasizing cases. These results indicate that BAG3 intra-cytoplasmic delocalisation is a specific feature of cancer versus non-neoplastic prostate and a candidate new marker for prediction of prostate cancer invasiveness and behaviour.
Staibano
Stefania
S
Department of Biomorphological and Functional Sciences, Pathology Section, University Federico II of Naples, School of Medicine, Via S. Pansini, 5, 80131, Naples, Italy. staibano@unina.it
Mascolo
Massimo
M
Di Benedetto
Maria
M
Vecchione
Maria Luisa
ML
Ilardi
Gennaro
G
Di Lorenzo
Giuseppe
G
Autorino
Riccardo
R
Salerno
Vincenzo
V
Morena
Antonella
A
Rocco
Alba
A
Turco
Maria Caterina
MC
Morelli
Emilio
E
D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing / Q000378:metabolism*; D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D051017:Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis*; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology
D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D051017:Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins; C414431:BAG3 protein, human; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor