Abstract
The expression of the drug resistance-related proteins glutathione S-transferases (GST) and P-glycoprotein (Pgp) was analyzed quantitatively in samples of 53 astrocytic gliomas (eight WHO grade 1, 11 WHO grade 2, 9 WHO grade 3 and 25 glioblastomas, WHO grade 4). Sections of these tumors were immunohistochemically stained with antibodies to Pgp (MDR1-gene product) and to GST subclasses alpha, mu and pi. Pgp expression was not detected in tumor cells of the majority of low-grade astrocytomas (69%) and the percentage of Pgp stained cells generally increased with tumor grade. However, 4 of the 34 malignant gliomas were negative. Many neoplastic cells of most tumors were dominantly stained for GST-pi. The other two subclasses were expressed in a less consistent fashion with no linear correlation to grading. Grade 2 astrocytomas exhibited the highest percentage of cells with GST expression. GST-alpha was absent in 9 tumors, GST-mu in 8 and GST-pi in 4. Four tumors showed no expression of any GST subclass or Pgp in neoplastic cells. Of 13 patients 5 with a more favorable clinical course after radiation and chemotherapy had a lower percentage of neoplastic cells immunostained for Pgp and the three GST subclasses than 8 patients with a worse clinical course. These results suggest a relationship between expression of drug resistance-related proteins in gliomas and response to chemotherapy with ACNU/VM26.
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Received: 18 November 1996 / Revised: 5 May 1997 / Revised, accepted: 16 June 1997
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von Bossanyi, P., Diete, S., Dietzmann, K. et al. Immunohistochemical expression of P-glycoprotein and glutathione S-transferases in cerebral gliomas and response to chemotherapy. Acta Neuropathol 94, 605–611 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/s004010050756
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s004010050756