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PMID: 10764706 Published · ppublish English Journal Article

alpha-catenin expression is decreased in human gastric cancers and in the gastric mucosa of first degree relatives.

Gut ·Vol. 46 ·No. 5 ·2000-05-00 ·Pages 639-44

Yu J, Ebert MP, Miehlke S, Rost H, Lendeckel U, Leodolter A, Stolte M, Bayerdörffer E, Malfertheiner P

Abstract

The role of altered cell adhesion is critical for the development of epithelial cancers. E-cadherin plays an important role in the maintenance of cell-cell adhesion and its function is thought to be regulated by its associated cytoplasmic proteins, such as alpha-catenin and beta-catenin. To determine the role of alpha-catenin expression in gastric carcinogenesis, we studied its expression in human gastric cancer and in the gastric mucosa of first degree relatives with no clinical disease. alpha-Catenin expression was assessed by immunohistochemical analysis and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using gastric tissue specimens from patients with gastric cancer and from the gastric mucosa of first degree relatives of gastric cancer patients and healthy controls. mRNA levels of alpha-catenin were reduced or absent in 13 of 19 gastric cancer tissues, which differed significantly from levels found in the tumour free gastric mucosa of cancer patients (p<0.05). Of the cancer samples with altered alpha-catenin mRNA levels, alpha-catenin expression was negative in seven and decreased in six cases. Interestingly, decreased alpha-catenin mRNA expression also occurred in the mucosa of the corpus (11/18) and antrum (4/18) of first degree relatives. In the corpus biopsies alpha-catenin expression was more often decreased or lost compared with the antrum biopsies in first degree relatives and healthy controls (p<0.05). Immunohistochemical analysis revealed membranous expression of alpha-catenin in gastric cancer cells and the non-malignant gastric epithelium. However, some cancers also exhibited loss of membranous staining. Generally, loss or downregulation of alpha-catenin mRNA in the gastric mucosa was associated with Helicobacter pylori infection (p<0.05). Our findings suggest that loss or downregulation of alpha-catenin expression may be an early event in gastric carcinogenesis and may be associated with H pylori infection.

MeSH Terms
Adult Aged Biopsy Case-Control Studies Cytoskeletal Proteins/biosynthesis,genetics Down-Regulation Family Female Gastric Mucosa/metabolism,pathology Helicobacter Infections/complications,metabolism,pathology Helicobacter pylori Humans Immunohistochemistry Male Middle Aged Pedigree RNA, Messenger/analysis Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction Stomach Neoplasms/complications,metabolism,pathology alpha Catenin
Chemicals
CTNNA1 protein, human Cytoskeletal Proteins RNA, Messenger alpha Catenin
Authors & Affiliations
9 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Yu J
Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Infectious Diseases, Otto-von-Guericke University, D-39120 Magdeburg, Germany.
Ebert M P
Miehlke S
Rost H
Lendeckel U
Leodolter A
Stolte M
Bayerdörffer E
Malfertheiner P
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Article Info
Journal
Gut
Abbr.
Gut
ISSN
0017-5749
DOI
10.1136/gut.46.5.639
Published
2000-05-00
Pages
639-44
Language
English
Region
England
NLM ID
2985108R
PMCID
PMC1727909
Subset
IM
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1136/gut.46.5.639 PMC Full Text View journal details
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