RESULTS: Here, we examined the expression of CD44 in tumor cell lines and in patients\' material. We found that CD44 is over-expressed in TGCTs compared to normal tissues. Immunohistochemical staining in 71 tissue specimens demonstrated increased expression of CD44 in some patients, whereas CD44 was absent in normal tissue. In seminomas, a high percentage of tumor and stromal cells showed cytoplasmic and/or cell surface staining for CD44 as well as increased staining for CD44 in the tumor stroma was found in some cases. The increased expression of CD44 either in tumor cells or in stromal components was associated with tumor size, nodal metastasis, vascular/lymphatic invasion, and disease stage only in seminomas. The increased stromal expression of CD44 in TGCTs was positively associated with angiogenesis.
CONCLUSIONS: CD44 may exhibit diverse biological functions in seminomas and NSGCTs. The expression of CD44 in tumor cells as well as in tumor stroma fosters an aggressive phenotype in seminomas and should be considered in disease treatment.
结果:这里,我们检测了CD44在肿瘤细胞系和患者材料中的表达。我们发现与正常组织相比,CD44在TGCT中过度表达。在71个组织标本中的免疫组织化学染色显示CD44在一些患者中的表达增加,而CD44在正常组织中不存在。在精原细胞瘤中,高百分比的肿瘤和基质细胞显示CD44的细胞质和/或细胞表面染色,并且在某些情况下发现肿瘤基质中CD44的染色增加。CD44在肿瘤细胞或基质成分中的表达增加与肿瘤大小有关。淋巴结转移,血管/淋巴侵入,和疾病阶段仅在精原细胞瘤。TGCT中CD44的基质表达增加与血管生成呈正相关。
结论:CD44在精原细胞瘤和NSGCT中可能表现出不同的生物学功能。CD44在肿瘤细胞以及肿瘤基质中的表达促进了精原细胞瘤的侵袭性表型,应在疾病治疗中予以考虑。