Clinical Significance of Hu-Antigen Receptor (HuR)   and Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) Expression in Human   Malignant and Benign Thyroid Lesions.
Hu-antigen R (HuR) is considered to play a crucial role in tumor formation and growth by binding to mRNAs encoding proteins such as Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducing their expression via mRNA stabilization and/or altered translation. The present study aimed to evaluate the clinical significance of HuR and COX-2 proteins’ expression in human benign and malignant thyroid lesions. HuR and COX-2 proteins’ expression was assessed immunohistochemically on paraffin-embedded thyroid tissues obtained from 98 patients with benign (n = 48) and malignant (n = 50) lesions and was statistically analyzed with clinicopathological parameters, follicular cells’ proliferative capacity and recurrence risk rate. Enhanced HuR and COX-2 expression was significantly more frequently observed in malignant compared to benign thyroid lesions (p = 0.0073 and p = 0.0016, respectively), as well as in papillary carcinomas compared to hyperplastic nodules (p = 0.0039 and p = 0.0009, respectively). Positive associations of both HuR and COX-2 expression with follicular cells’ proliferation rate were also noted (p = 0.0087 and p = 0.0127, respectively). In malignant thyroid lesions, elevated COX-2 expression was significantly associated with female patients’ gender (p = 0.0381) and the presence of lymph node metastases (p = 0.0296). The present data support evidence that both HuR and COX-2 may be involved in the malignant state of thyroid neoplasia and may be utilized in the diagnosis of malignant thyroid tumors.
Constantinos
C
Giaginis
Paraskevi
P
Alexandrou
Ioanna
I
Delladetsima
Ioannis
I
Karavokyros
Eugene
E
Danas
Athina
A
Giagini
Efstratios
E
Patsouris
Stamatios
S
Theocharis
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism; D002291:Carcinoma, Papillary / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2 / Q000378:metabolism*; D000067780:ELAV-Like Protein 1 / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D006965:Hyperplasia; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D060787:Neoplasm Grading; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D015996:Survival Rate; D013961:Thyroid Gland / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000601:surgery; D013964:Thyroid Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D000067780:ELAV-Like Protein 1; C098770:ELAVL1 protein, human; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2; C496540:PTGS2 protein, human