title: Evaluation of urinary human telomerase reverse transcriptase mRNA and scatter factor protein as urine markers for diagnosis of bladder cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Expression of the human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) gene, which codes for the catalytic subunit of telomerase is considered an important tumor marker used for bladder cancer detection being found in the majority of cancer cells. Scatter Factor (SF) is a secretory protein produced by fibroblasts and smooth muscles and induces scattering of the epithelial cells. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the potential usefulness of hTERT and SF measurement as urinary markers for bladder cancer diagnosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Voided urine specimens were collected from patients with histologically confirmed bladder urothelial carcinoma (malignant group: n = 60), urological patients without urothelial carcinoma (benign group: n = 25), and healthy volunteers (control group: n = 20). All cases underwent urine cytology, serological schistosomiasis antibody assay and detection of urinary hTERT mRNA using RT-PCR and SF using ELISA.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Positivity rate of hTERT mRNA was markedly higher in malignant versus benign or control cases (86.67%, 8%, and 0%, respectively, p-value < 0.001). Combining hTERT and cytology increased the sensitivity of cytology to 95%. According to a cut-off value of urinary SF (> or = 410 ng/mg protein), 57 (95%) of the patients with bladder carcinoma, 10 (40%) with benign lesions, and non of the control individuals were positive and the difference between the 3 groups was statistically significant (p < 0.001). The sensitivity of cytology was increased to 98.33% when combined with the SF assay. When associating the two urinary markers with different clinicopathological factors of the bladder cancer group, only SF exerted a significantly higher positivity rate at the invasive stage (100%) than the superficial stage (88.46%) as well as in transitional cell carcinoma (100% thansquamous cell carcinoma type (87.5%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  hTERT and SF can be considered potential useful markers for detection of bladder cancer.
authors.affiliation: Medical biochemistry and molecular biology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University Cairo, Egypt. dr_sanaa_eissa@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Sanaa
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eissa
authors.forename: Tarek
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Motawi
authors.forename: Soheir
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Badr
authors.forename: Ashraf
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zaghlool
authors.forename: Ahmed
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Maher
mesh_terms: D014644:Genetic Variation; D006801:Humans; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics*; D012194:RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase / Q000235:genetics*; D019098:Telomerase / Q000235:genetics*; D001749:Urinary Bladder Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000652:urine
chemical_list: D012333:RNA, Messenger; D012194:RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase; D019098:Telomerase