title: Fucosylated haptoglobin is a novel type of cancer biomarker linked to the prognosis after an operation in colorectal cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Fucosylation is a crucial oligosaccharide modification in cancer and inflammation. Total cellular proteins of cancer cells and the sera of patients with cancer both show increased fucosylation levels. Certain kinds of fucosylated proteins can be applied as novel cancer biomarkers in glyco-proteomic analyses. We previously identified fucosylated haptoglobin (Fuc-Hpt) as a serologic marker for pancreatic cancer, and recently developed a lectin-antibody enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay system for quantifying Fuc-Hpt. In the present study, we investigated the clinical outcome of Fuc-Hpt levels in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), and examined the mechanisms underlying Fut-Hpt production using a murine tumor transplantation model.
  
  
  METHODS
  The relationship between Fuc-Hpt levels and clinical parameters was investigated in 77 patients with CRC, all of whom underwent primary resection. Serum Fuc-Hpt levels were examined in athymic nude mice injected with colon cancer cell lines that lacked fucosylation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fuc-Hpt levels were significantly associated with overall and relapse-free survival, distant metastasis, clinical stage, and curability. Multivariate analysis revealed that distant metastasis was an independent factor for increased Fuc-Hpt levels. The combination of Fuc-Hpt and CEA might be a better serologic marker to predict prognosis. Fuc-Hpt levels were higher in mice with direct injection of tumor cells into the spleen than in those injected subcutaneously.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Fuc-Hpt might be a useful marker for the prognosis of CRC. Fuc-Hpt could be produced by the tissue surrounding tumor cells, which might be the mechanism underlying Fuc-Hpt elevation associated with distant metastasis.
authors: Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Clinical Investigation, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Japan.
authors: Yuri
authors: Y
authors: Takeda
authors: Shinichiro
authors: S
authors: Shinzaki
authors: Kumiko
authors: K
authors: Okudo
authors: Kenta
authors: K
authors: Moriwaki
authors: Kohei
authors: K
authors: Murata
authors: Eiji
authors: E
authors: Miyoshi
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis*; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D005643:Fucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D006242:Haptoglobins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D008875:Middle Aged; D009368:Neoplasm Transplantation; D011379:Prognosis
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D006242:Haptoglobins; D005643:Fucose