Notch1 is an independent prognostic factor for patients with glioma.
OBJECTIVE
Notch signaling plays a complex role in human malignancy. It can affect cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis either positively or negatively, depending on cell type.


METHODS
Clinical gliomas from 274 patients who had not received chemotherapy were collected, and the expression of Notch1 protein was assessed by immunochemistry assays. Staining evaluation results were analyzed statistically in relation to various clinicopathological characters. Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards regression methods were used to assess associations of Notch1 expression with glioma survival.


RESULTS
We found that the levels of expression of Notch1 protein were higher in glioma than control normal brain tissue. Moreover, the expression of Notch1 was associated closely with glioma progression, since expression levels increased from grades I to IV glioma. The overall survival rate was significantly lower for patients with Notch1 positive than those with Notch1 negative tumors. Multivariate analysis showed that Notch1 was an independent prognostic factor for patients with glioma.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings we confirm that Notch1 expression is up-regulated in glioma and related to tumor progression. Notch1 might also serve as a novel prognostic marker that is independent of, and additive to, the WHO grade.
Department of Neurosurgery, Tangdu Hospital, the Forth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China.
Jiang
J
Li
Ying
Y
Cui
Guodong
G
Gao
Zhenwei
Z
Zhao
Hua
H
Zhang
Xuelian
X
Wang
D000367:Age Factors; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D005910:Glioma / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D051881:Receptor, Notch1 / Q000378:metabolism*; D015854:Up-Regulation
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; C497761:NOTCH1 protein, human; D051881:Receptor, Notch1