title: Quantification of transforming growth factor beta 1 levels in metastatic axillary lymph node tissue extracts from breast cancer patients: a new specimen source.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To use cytoplasmic tissue extract as a new specimen source to quantify transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGFbeta1) protein in metastatic axillary lymph node tissue (ALNT) of breast cancer (BC) patients and to confirm the feasibility of this approach in a prospective pilot study on a subgroup of patients with invasive BC.
  
  
  METHODS
  The 6 selected malignant and autologous nonmalignant pairs of ALNT were fractionated, under special preanalytical, nonaggressive/nondenaturing conditions, to obtain respective cytoplasmic extracts for TGFbeta1 detection by the Quantikine (R&D Systems Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A.) enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The data indicated a highly significant (r = 0.973054) positive linear correlation between the TGFbeta1 concentration and total protein concentration in cytoplasmic extract of metastatic ALNT. The subsequent patients' pilot study, performed strictly before any clinicopathologic factors were accessible, revealed significantly (p < 0.01) elevated TGFbeta1 in malignant ALNT (median value: 1.05 ng/mg protein, range: 0.67-3.6 ng/mg protein, n = 6) vs. autologous nonmalignant ALNT controls (median value: 0.48 ng/mg protein, range: 0.29-0.90 ng/mg protein, n = 6). This elevation was correlated with the number of metastatic axillary lymph nodes with respect to the total and was consistent with an increase in size of tumor deposits in axillary lymph nodes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data provide for the first time suggestive evidence that the TGFbeta1 level in cytoplasmic extracts of metastatic ALNTs may be a promising biomarker of invasiveness for BC patients. Confirmatory, large-scale studies are needed to evaluate possible implications of this putative biomarker in BC diagnosis and treatment.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Radiobiology and Molecular Genetics, Institute of Nuclear Sciences "Vinia," Serbia. vesnai@eunet.rs
authors.forename: Vesna
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Ivanović
authors.forename: Nasta
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Dedović-Tanić
authors.forename: Zorka
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Milovanović
authors.forename: Silvana
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lukić
authors.forename: Srdjan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nikolić
authors.forename: Vladimir
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Baltić
authors.forename: Bratislav
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Stojiljković
authors.forename: Nikola
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Budisin
authors.forename: Kiril
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Savovski
authors.forename: Miroslav
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Demajo
authors.forename: Bogomir
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dimitrijević
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000556:secondary; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001365:Axilla; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D002458:Cell Fractionation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000378:metabolism*; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008875:Middle Aged; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1 / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1