Abstract
Nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) is controlled by the classical and alternative NF-κB pathways, the role of which in prostate cancer (PCa) is not clearly defined. To provide this missing translational link, we compared the classical and alternative NF-κB pathways in normal prostate, benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) and PCa. Prostate specimens were divided into three groups: group A, PCa (n = 68); group B, BPH (n = 60); and group C, normal prostates (n = 15). The gene expression levels of NF-κB1 and NF-κB2 were determined by real-time quantitative RT-PCR. Additionally, we analyzed the expression and sub-cellular localization of phosphorylated P50 (p-P50) and phosphorylated P52 (p-P52) proteins by immunohistochemical staining. Furthermore, associations were made between NF-κB pathway proteins and patients’ prognosis. Compared with BPH and normal prostate tissues, the expression of NF-κB1 gene was differentially down-regulated by >1.5-fold, whereas NF-κB2 gene was differentially up-regulated by >2-fold in PCa tissues. The proportion of p-P50 positive patients in group A (26.5%) was significantly lower than in group B (88.3%, p = 0.005) and C (100%, p = 0.002). The proportion of p-P52 positive patients in group A (42.6%) was significantly higher than in group B (11.7%, p = 0.009) and C (6.7%, p = 0.008). Comparison of the survival curves in group A according to p-P52 expression showed a significant difference between positive and negative patients. The p-P52 positive patients showed worse prognosis (p = 0.019). Our findings suggest for the first time that the classical and alternative NF-κB pathways have an important role in PCa. p-P52 might be a predictor of poor prognosis for PCa.
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This work was supported by grants from the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province (04003650), National High Technology Research and Development Project of China (2006AA02A245; 2007AA022001) and National Natural Science Foundation of China (30872960)
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Chao Cai, Fu-neng Jiang and Yu-xiang Liang offered equal contributions to this study.
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Cai, C., Jiang, Fn., Liang, Yx. et al. Classical and Alternative Nuclear Factor-κB Pathways: A Comparison among Normal Prostate, Benign Prostate Hyperplasia and Prostate Cancer. Pathol. Oncol. Res. 17, 873–878 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12253-011-9396-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12253-011-9396-5