title: VEZT as a novel independent prognostic factor in gastric cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Vezatin is an transmembrane protein associated with cell-cell adhesion junctions. In our previous studies, we found that the tumor suppressor function of VEZT was related to methylation of CpG island and were down-regulated in tumor tissue and cells compared to normal controls. However, the role of VEZT gene as a novel putative tumor suppressor in biological characteristics and the relationship with clinicopathological factors and prognosis of gastric cancer was not yet clear. Therefore, we sought to explore these questions and prepare for further research in this study.
  
  
  METHODS
  We examined the vezatin expression levels in 119 gastric cancer tissues and adjacent normal tissues by immunohistochemistry. Furthermore, we evaluated the expression of VEZT and its relationship with clinicopathological factors, lymphatic metastasis and prognostic value for gastric cancer.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The expression of VEZT was significantly down-regulated in gastric cancer tissues and cell lines and its expression levels was related to differentiation, TNM staging and lymphatic metastasis. Furthermore, analysis of 5-year survival of 119 gastric cancer patients showed that those with strong vezatin expression had significantly longer overall survival time than those with negative vezatin expression.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data provided an innovative insight that up-regulation of vezatin can be taken as a meaningful way for treating human gastric and other types of cancers. And VEZT expression levels can be considered as a biomarker for gastric cancer progression, lymphatic metastasis and as a novel independent prognostic factor.
authors: Yan-Sen
authors: YS
authors: Li
authors: Yue-Zhi
authors: YZ
authors: Chen
authors: Xiao-Bo
authors: XB
authors: Guo
authors: Xin
authors: X
authors: Liu
authors: Le-Ping
authors: LP
authors: Li
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D018899:CpG Islands / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D008565:Membrane Proteins; C494547:VEZT protein, human
keywords: VEZT; clinicopathological; gastric cancer; lymphatic metastasis; prognosis