title: Endothelial expression of endocan is strongly associated with tumor progression in pituitary adenoma.
abstract: Although benign, pituitary adenomas frequently invade adjacent sinuses or recur after first surgery. To date, there is no histological marker predictive of recurrence. Angiogenic factors are candidate markers. Endocan is a proteoglycan secreted by endothelial cells, associated with an aggressive behavior in several tumor types. Endocan expression was investigated by immunohistochemistry and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in 18 normal post-mortem pituitaries and in 107 patients operated for a pituitary adenoma (with a follow-up of at least 8 years after surgery). In normal pituitaries, endocan was never observed in vessels but was detected in isolated endocrine cells. In adenoma tissue, we found a strong association between endocan immunoreactivity in endothelial cells and progression (P = 0.0009), as well as tumor size (P = 0.0012), raised mitotic count (P = 0.02) and p53 expression (P = 0.032). Morphometric analysis of the microvessels showed that the mean vessel area was significantly higher in the subgroup of tumors with an endothelial expression of endocan (P = 0.028), coherent with the neoangiogenesis process occurring in the pituitary. The immunolabeling of endocan in endothelial cells may therefore appear to be a relevant marker of aggressive behavior in pituitary tumors.
authors.affiliation: Université Lille Nord de France, Lille, France.
authors.forename: Aurélie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cornelius
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cortet-Rudelli
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Assaker
authors.forename: Olivier
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Kerdraon
authors.forename: Marie-Hélène
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Gevaert
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Prévot
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lassalle
authors.forename: Jacqueline
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Trouillas
authors.forename: Maryse
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Delehedde
authors.forename: Claude-Alain
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Maurage
mesh_terms: D000236:Adenoma / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis; D018450:Disease Progression; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D010911:Pituitary Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D011509:Proteoglycans / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; C101134:ESM1 protein, human; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins; D011509:Proteoglycans