Mutation, Expression Of EphB4 Gene In Human Laryngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

BackgroundEphB4 is a member of the largest family of transmembrane receptor tyrosine kinases and plays important roles in vascular development and growth, migration and invasion of malignant cells. A number of reports show that EphB4 and EphrinB2 contribute to tumor growth in various human tumors. Among those, there are only few reports examining the expression pattern of Eph/ephrin in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC).ObjectWe aimed to determine the biological role of EphB4 in LSCC.Material and MethodsWe carried out RT-PCR and Western blot to determine the messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein levels of EphB4, respectively, in 40 LSCC and 40 paired adjacent normal tissue samples. Polymerase chain reaction low ionic strength single-stranded conformation polymorphism (PCR-LIS-SSCP) and DNA sequencing were used to detect the mutation of exon 13 and 14 of EphB4 gene. EphB4 DNA level was evaluated by PCR withβ-actin as internal control.ResultsEphB4 expression was detected in all tumor specimens. EphB4 mRNA expression was found in 30 (75%) out of 40 paired adjacent normal tissues analyzed. There was a statistically significantly higher mean EphB4 mRNA and protein expression in LSCC specimens vs paired adjacent normal tissue specimens. EphB4 protein was strongly expressed in tumor with high mRNA EphB4 expression. In 40 LSCC and 40 paired adjacent normal tissue samples, we did not detect the mutation of exonl3 and 14. No amplification was found in the samples we detected.ConclusionThese data are the first to demonstrate the association of EphB4 with LSCC and hence provide a biological marker and a useful prognostic indicator for LSCC. It is useful for diagnosis and therapies of LSCC.