B7-H4 expression is correlated with tumor progression and clinical outcome in urothelial cell carcinoma.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the mRNA and protein levels of B7-H4, a B7 family molecule, in human urothelial cell carcinoma (UCC), to analyze the relationship between B7-H4 protein expression level and pathological stage of UCC, and to examine the potential of B7-H4 as a prognostic factor in UCC.


METHODS
mRNA and protein levels of B7-H4 were measured in pairs of tumor tissues and matched adjacent nontumor tissue obtained from patients with UCC by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and immunohistochemical staining, respectively. Association of the protein level of B7-H4 with pathological tumor stage and the overall survival of UCC patients were also analyzed.


RESULTS
B7-H4 mRNA and protein level were significantly higher in UCC tumor tissues compared with adjacent nontumor tissues as assessed by qRT-PCR and immunohistochemical staining, respectively. Higher B7-H4 protein levels were observed in patients with more advanced pathological stage of UCC and were also associated with decreased overall survival of patients with UCC.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings from this study indicate that B7-H4 has the potential to be an independent prognostic indicator for UCC.
Department of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University Changzhou 213000, Jiangsu, China.
Min
M
Fan
Department of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University Changzhou 213000, Jiangsu, China.
Qianfeng
Q
Zhuang
Department of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University Changzhou 213000, Jiangsu, China.
Yiming
Y
Chen
Department of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University Changzhou 213000, Jiangsu, China.
Tao
T
Ding
Department of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University Changzhou 213000, Jiangsu, China.
Hongwei
H
Yao
Department of Tumor Biological Treatment, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University Changzhou 213000, Jiangsu, China.
Lujun
L
Chen
Department of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University Changzhou 213000, Jiangsu, China.
Xiaozhou
X
He
Department of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University Changzhou 213000, Jiangsu, China.
Xianlin
X
Xu
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis* / Q000235:genetics; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D018450:Disease Progression; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D001749:Urinary Bladder Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D019459:Urothelium / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D060907:V-Set Domain-Containing T-Cell Activation Inhibitor 1 / Q000032:analysis* / Q000235:genetics
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D060907:V-Set Domain-Containing T-Cell Activation Inhibitor 1; C475826:VTCN1 protein, human
B7 family; B7-H4; Bladder cancer; gene expression; prognosis