title: Hyperplasia of pericytes is one of the main characteristics of microvascular architecture in malignant glioma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the role of pericytes in constructing the malformed microvessels (MVs) and participating microvascular architecture heterogeneity of glioma.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty human glioma tissue samples (WHO grade II-IV) were included in present study. Observation of blood vessel patterns, quantitative analysis of endothelial cells (ECs)- and pericyte-labeled MVs and comparison between malignant grades based on single- or double-immunohistochemical staining. The MV number density (MVND), microvascular pericyte number density (MPND), and microvascular pericyte area density (MPAD) were calculated. The expression of PDGFβ was also scored after immunostaining.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In grade II glioma, most of tumor MVs were the thin-wall CD34+ vessels with near normal morphology. In addition to thin-wall CD34+ MVs, more thick-wall MVs were found in grade III glioma, which often showed α-SMA positive. Most of MVs in grade IV glioma were in the form of plexus, curled cell cords and glomeruloid microvascular proliferation while the α-SMA+ cells were the main components. The MVs usually showed disordered arrangement, loose connection and active cell proliferation as shown by Ki67 and α-SMA coexpression. With the increase of glioma grades, the α-SMA+ MVND, CD34+ MVND and MPND were significantly augmented although the increase of CD34+ MVND but not MPAD was statistically insignificant between grade III and IV. It was interesting that some vessel-like structures only consist of α-SMA+ cells, assuming the guiding role of pericytes in angiogenesis. The expression level of PDGFβ was upregulated and directly correlated with the MPND in different glioma grades.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Hyperplasia of pericytes was one of the significant characteristics of malignant glioma and locally proliferated pericytes were the main constituent of MVs in high grade glioma. The pathological characteristics of pericytes could be used as indexes of malignant grades of glioma.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Combined Injury, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, College of Preventive Medicine, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China; Institute of Pathology and Southwest Cancer Center, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, and Key Laboratory of Tumor Immunopathology, Ministry of Education of China, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Huiqin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology and Southwest Cancer Center, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, and Key Laboratory of Tumor Immunopathology, Ministry of Education of China, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Deyu
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Institute of Combined Injury, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, College of Preventive Medicine, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Yongping
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Su
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology and Southwest Cancer Center, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, and Key Laboratory of Tumor Immunopathology, Ministry of Education of China, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Dongmei
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology and Southwest Cancer Center, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, and Key Laboratory of Tumor Immunopathology, Ministry of Education of China, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Qingliang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Combined Injury, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, College of Preventive Medicine, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Combined Injury, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, College of Preventive Medicine, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Qing
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Institute of Combined Injury, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, College of Preventive Medicine, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Xinze
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ran
authors.affiliation: Institute of Toxicology, College of Preventive Medicine, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Zhongmin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zou
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000473:pathology; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000235:genetics; D042783:Endothelial Cells / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D005910:Glioma / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D006965:Hyperplasia / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic; D020286:Pericytes / Q000473:pathology