Up-regulation of glucosylceramide synthase in urinary bladder neoplasms.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the relationships between the clinicopathologic features and the expression of GCS in bladder cancer.


METHODS
Using immunohistochemistry and Western blotting method, 75 bladder cancer specimens were tested for expression of GCS. The correlation of GCS with clinicopathologic features of the patients was analyzed in combination with clinical data. Statistics analyses were done with SPSS 13.0 software, χ(2) test, Fisher's exact test, Kaplan-Meier method, Log-rank test.


RESULTS
High and low level expression of GCS explored by immunohistochemistry were 61.3 (46/75) and 39.6 (29/75), respectively. The high expression group (n = 46) showed a significant correlation with high histologic grade (P = 0.021) and tended to show (P = 0.045) that up-expression of GCS was positive related to BNs with lymph node metastasis among the various clinicopathologic characteristics. The overall 5-year survival and disease-free survival rates were 39.5% and 18.4%, respectively. Mean overall survival time was 60.3 months for the low expression group and 45.1 months for the high expression group. Mean disease-free survival was 36.2 months for the low-expression group and 27.3 months for the high-expression group.


CONCLUSIONS
Our study suggested that up-regulation of GCS might make an aggressive choice of surgical therapy. A high expression of GCS seemed to be an indicator of poor prognosis.
Sun
Chang-cheng
CC
Department of Urology, First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
Zhang
Zhe
Z
Zhang
Si-Yang
SY
Li
Jun
J
Li
Ze-liang
ZL
Kong
Chui-ze
CZ
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015153:Blotting, Western; D005260:Female; D005964:Glucosyltransferases / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D060787:Neoplasm Grading; D011379:Prognosis; D015854:Up-Regulation; D001749:Urinary Bladder Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology
D005964:Glucosyltransferases; C023246:ceramide glucosyltransferase