Cathepsin B Expression and the Correlation with Clinical Aspects of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Abstract BackgroundGiven the importance of the role of gene expression in the prognosis and diagnosis of malignancies of the head and neck, we examined in this study the gene expressions of cathepsin-B (Cat-B) and caveolin-1 (Cav-1) in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and oral lichen planus (OLP) and compared them to controls. We also investigated their relationship to clinicopathological indices.MethodsIn this case-control study, 29 biopsy samples from OLP patients were compared to 29 paraffin blocks of OSCC samples as well as 28 paraffin blocks of normal oral tissue. The mean age of OSCC and OLP patients were 59.24 ± 15.04 and 48.79 ± 14.17 years, respectively. Clinical data were analyzed for their relationship to gene expressions using parametric and nonparametric tests.ResultsThe gene expressions of Cat-B and Cav-1 were significantly higher in OSCC and OLP patients compared to controls (p<0.001). The highest expression were found in OSCC, which was significantly different from OLP and controls. There were also significant differences between OLP and control in terms of the gene expression of Cat-B and Cav-1 .There was no association between the gene expression and age, gender, duration of disease, Thongprasom score, smoking and cutaneous lichen planus. However, the expressions were related to the grade and stage of OSCC lesions (p:0.01, p:0.02).ConclusionThe gene expressions of Cat-B and Cav-1 in OSCC were associated with the stage and grade of lesions. Therefore, they appear to be useful in predicting the biological behavior of OSCC and malignant transformation of OLP.

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New Insights Into Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma: From Clinical Aspects to Molecular Tumorigenesis

International Journal of Molecular Sciences ◽

10.3390/ijms22052252 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 22 (5) ◽

pp. 2252

Author(s):

Shang-Hung Chen ◽

Sheng-Yen Hsiao ◽

Kwang-Yu Chang ◽

Jang-Yang Chang

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Squamous Cell Carcinoma ◽

Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma ◽

Cell Carcinoma ◽

Squamous Cell ◽

Association Studies ◽

Basic Knowledge ◽

Clinical Aspects ◽

Genome Association ◽

Effective Treatments

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is a prevalent malignant disease worldwide, especially so in Taiwan. Early- or even preclinical-stage detection is critical for reducing morbidity and mortality from oral SCC. Epidemiological and genome association studies are useful for identifying clinicopathological risk factors for preventive, diagnostic, and therapeutic approaches of oral SCC. For advanced oral SCC, effective treatments are critical to prolonging survival and enhancing quality of life. As oral SCC is characteristic of regional invasion with lymph node metastases, understanding the aggressive features of oral SCC, particularly in lymphangiogenesis, is essential for determining effective treatments. Emerging evidence has demonstrated that the tumor microenvironment (TME) plays a pivotal role in tumor growth, invasion, and metastases. Recent clinical successes in immune checkpoint inhibitors either alone or combined with chemotherapy have also supported the therapeutic value of immunotherapy in oral SCC. This review summarizes critical advances in basic knowledge of oral SCC from the perspective of clinicopathological risk factors, molecular tumorigenesis, and the TME. We also highlight our recent investigations on the microbiome, genome association studies, lymphangiogenesis, and immunomodulation in oral SCC. This review may provide new insights for oral SCC treatment by systematically interpreting emerging evidence from various preclinical and clinical studies.

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