Altered expression patterns of syndecan-1 and -2 predict biochemical recurrence in prostate cancer

Correlation of syndecan gene amplification with metastatic potential and clinical outcomes in carcinomas

Cell surface receptors play crucial roles in cellular responses to extracellular ligands, helping to modulate the functions of a cell based on information coming from outside the cell. Syndecan refers to a family of cell adhesion receptors that regulate both extracellular and cytosolic events. Alteration of syndecan expression disrupts regulatory mechanisms in a cell type-specific fashion, often leading to serious diseases, notably cancer. Given the multifaceted functions and distinct tissue distributions of syndecan, it will be important to unravel the gene-level intricacies of syndecan expression and thereby further understand its involvement in various carcinogenic processes. Although accumulating evidence indicates that the protein expression patterns of syndecan family members are significantly altered in cancer cells, the underlying gene-level mechanisms remain largely unknown. This review endeavors to explore syndecan gene expression levels across different cancer types by scrutinizing extensive cancer genome datasets using tools such as cBioPortal. Our analysis unveils that somatic mutations in SDC genes are rare occurrences, whereas copy number alterations are frequently observed across diverse cancers, particularly in SDC2 and SDC4. Notably, amplifications of SDC2 and SDC4 correlate with heightened metastatic potential and dismal prognosis. This underscores the recurrent nature of SDC2 and SDC4 amplifications during carcinogenesis and sheds light on their role in promoting cancer activity through augmented protein expression. The identification of these amplifications not only enriches our understanding of carcinogenic mechanisms but also hints at the potential therapeutic avenue of targeting SDC2 and SDC4 to curb cancer cell proliferation and metastasis.

Targeting syndecan-1: new opportunities in cancer therapy

Syndecan-1 (SDC1, CD138) is one of the heparan sulfate proteoglycans and is essential for maintaining normal cell morphology, interacting with the extracellular and intracellular protein repertoire, as well as mediating signaling transduction upon environmental stimuli. The critical role of SDC1 in promoting tumorigenesis and metastasis has been increasingly recognized in various cancer types, implying a promising potential of utilizing SDC1 as a novel target for cancer therapy. This review summarizes the current knowledge on SDC1 structure and functions, including its role in tumor biology. We also discuss the highlights and limitations of current SDC1-targeted therapies as well as the obstacles in developing new therapeutic methods, offering our perspective on the future directions to target SDC1 for cancer treatment.

Syndecan Family Gene and Protein Expression and Their Prognostic Values for Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the leading cause of cancer-associated mortality in men, and new biomarkers are still needed. The expression pattern and protein tissue localization of proteoglycans of the syndecan family (SDC 1-4) and syntenin-1 (SDCBP) were determined in normal and prostatic tumor tissue from two genetically engineered mouse models and human prostate tumors. Studies were validated using SDC 1-4 and SDCBP mRNA levels and patient survival data from The Cancer Genome Atlas and CamCAP databases. RNAseq showed increased expression of Sdc1 in Pb-Cre4/Pten^f/f mouse Pca and upregulation of Sdc3 expression and downregulation of Sdc2 and Sdc4 when compared to the normal prostatic tissue in Pb-Cre4/Trp53^f/f-;Rb1^f/f mouse tumors. These changes were confirmed by immunohistochemistry. In human PCa, SDC 1-4 and SDCBP immunostaining showed variable localization. Furthermore, Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that patients expressing SDC3 had shorter prostate-specific survival than those without SDC3 expression (log-rank test, p = 0.0047). Analysis of the MSKCC-derived expression showed that SDC1 and SDC3 overexpression is predictive of decreased biochemical recurrence-free survival (p = 0.0099 and p = 0.045, respectively), and SDC4 overexpression is predictive of increased biochemical recurrence-free survival (p = 0.035). SDC4 overexpression was associated with a better prognosis, while SDC1 and SDC3 were associated with more aggressive tumors and a worse prognosis.

Increased Cytoplasmic CD138 Expression Is Associated with Aggressive Characteristics in Prostate Cancer and Is an Independent Predictor for Biochemical Recurrence

Syndecan-1 (CD138) is a transmembrane proteoglycan expressed in various normal and malignant tissues. It is of interest due to a possible prognostic effect in tumors and its role as a target for the antibody-drug conjugate indatuximab ravtansine. Here, we analyzed 17,747 prostate cancers by immunohistochemistry. Membranous and cytoplasmic CD138 staining was separately recorded. In normal prostate glands, CD138 staining was limited to basal cells. In cancers, membranous CD138 positivity was seen in 19.6% and cytoplasmic CD138 staining in 11.2% of 12,851 interpretable cases. A comparison with clinico-pathological features showed that cytoplasmic CD138 staining was more linked to unfavorable tumor features than membranous staining. Cytoplasmic CD138 immunostaining was associated with high tumor stage (p < 0.0001), high Gleason grade (p < 0.0001), nodal metastases (p < 0.0001), positive surgical margin (p < 0.0001), and biochemical recurrence (p < 0.0001). This also holds true for both V-ets avian erythroblastosis virus E26 oncogene homolog (ERG) fusion positive and ERG fusion negative tumors although the cytoplasmic CD138 expression was markedly more frequent in ERG positive than in ERG negative tumors (p < 0.0001). Comparison with 11 previously analyzed chromosomal deletions identified a conspicuous association between cytoplasmic CD138 expression and 8p deletions (p < 0.0001) suggesting a possible functional interaction of CD138 with one or several 8p genes. Multivariate analysis revealed the cytoplasmic CD138 expression as an independent prognostic parameter in all cancers and in the ERG positive subgroup. In summary, our study indicates the cytoplasmic CD138 expression as a strong and independent predictor of poor prognosis in prostate cancer. Immunohistochemical measurement of CD138 protein may thus—perhaps in combination with other parameters—become clinically useful in the future.

Proteoglycans in the Pathogenesis of Hormone-Dependent Cancers: Mediators and Effectors

Hormone-dependent cancers exhibit high morbidity and mortality. In spite of advances in therapy, the treatment of hormone-dependent cancers remains an unmet health need. The tumor microenvironment (TME) exhibits unique characteristics that differ among various tumor types. It is composed of cancerous, non-cancerous, stromal, and immune cells that are surrounded and supported by components of the extracellular matrix (ECM). Therefore, the interactions among cancer cells, stromal cells, and components of the ECM determine cancer progression and response to therapy. Proteoglycans (PGs), hybrid molecules consisting of a protein core to which sulfated glycosaminoglycan chains are bound, are significant components of the ECM that are implicated in all phases of tumorigenesis. These molecules, secreted by both the stroma and cancer cells, are crucial signaling mediators that modulate the vital cellular pathways implicated in gene expression, phenotypic versatility, and response to therapy in specific tumor types. A plethora of deregulated signaling pathways contributes to the growth, dissemination, and angiogenesis of hormone-dependent cancers. Specific inputs from the endocrine and immune systems are some of the characteristics of hormone-dependent cancer pathogenesis. Importantly, the mechanisms involved in various aspects of cancer progression are executed in the ECM niche of the TME, and the PG components crucially mediate these processes. Here, we comprehensively discuss the mechanisms through which PGs affect the multifaceted aspects of hormone-dependent cancer development and progression, including cancer metastasis, angiogenesis, immunobiology, autophagy, and response to therapy.

Differential Expression and Prognostic Value of Cytoplasmic and Nuclear Cyclin D1 in Prostate Cancer

Cyclin D1 (CCND1) has been revealed as a key regulating protein in cell cycle (G1 phase) and plays a critical role in promoting tumor development. The purpose of our study was to investigate the associations between CCND1 and biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer (PCa). We performed immunostaining of CCND1 on a tissue microarray and evaluated the CCND1 expression levels based on the intensity and extent of staining. The clinical data was collected, and the follow-up data was received by searching our follow-up database called "PC-follow". We revealed that CCND1 expression patterns were different between cytoplasm and nucleus in this study, and the expression of CCND1 in adjacent normal tissues was higher than that in PCa tissues (P < 0.001), while nuclear CCND1 showed the opposite distribution characteristic (P < 0.001). The cytoplasmic CCND1 also showed correlation with several clinical factors, e.g., tumor T stage (P < 0.001), Gleason score (P = 0.028), positive surgical margin (P = 0.037), and capsule invasion (P = 0.04). We also revealed that cytoplasmic CCND1 is a protective prognostic factor in the biochemical recurrence (BCR) free time analysis (P = 0.002). However, the nuclear CCND1 showed no correlation with clinical factors or prognostic value in this study. This study found that cytoplasmic and nuclear CCND1 have significant different expression patterns in PCa tissues, and cytoplasmic CCND1 has a certain prognostic value in the BCR analysis.

SNAIL expression correlates with the translocation of syndecan‑1 intracellular domain into the nucleus in prostate cancer cell lines

Zinc finger protein SNAI1 (SNAIL) and zinc finger protein SNAI2 (SLUG) transcription factors promote epithelial-mesenchymal transition, a process through which epithelial cells acquire a mesenchymal phenotype, increasing their migratory and invasive properties. In prostate cancer (PCa) progression, increased expression levels of SNAIL and SLUG have been described. In advanced PCa, a decrease in the cell surface proteoglycan syndecan-1 (SDC-1), which has a role in cell-to-extracellular matrix adhesion, has been observed. Notably, SDC-1 nuclear location has been observed in mesenchymal cancers. The present study aimed to determine if SNAIL and SLUG may be associated with the nuclear location of SDC-1 in PCa. To determine the location of SDC-1, antibodies against its intracellular domain (ID) or extracellular domain (ED) were used in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and PCa samples with high Gleason scores. Only ID-SDC-1 was located in the cell nuclei in advanced PCa samples, but not in the BPH samples. ED-SDC-1 was located in the cell membrane and cytoplasm, exhibiting decreased levels in PCa in comparison with those in BPH. Furthermore, LNCaP and PC3 PCa cell lines with ectopic SNAIL expression exhibited nuclear ID-SDC-1. No change was observed in the ED-SDC-1 levels, and maintained its location in the cell membrane and cytoplasm. SLUG induced no change in ID-SDC-1 location. At the protein level, an association between SNAIL and nuclear ID-SDC-1 was observed. In conclusion, the results of the present study demonstrated that nuclear ID-SDC-1 localization was associated with SNAIL expression in PCa cell lines.

Prevalence of Syndecan-1 (CD138) Expression in Different Kinds of Human Tumors and Normal Tissues

Syndecan-1 (CD138) is a transmembrane proteoglycan known to be expressed in various normal and malignant tissues. It is of interest because of a possible prognostic role of differential expression in tumors and its role as a target for indatuximab, a monoclonal antibody coupled with a cytotoxic agent. To comprehensively analyze CD138 in normal and neoplastic tissues, we used tissue microarrays (TMAs) for analyzing immunohistochemically detectable CD138 expression in 2,518 tissue samples from 85 different tumor entities and 76 different normal tissue types. The data showed that CD138 expression is abundant in tumors. At least an occasional weak CD138 immunostaining could be detected in 71 of 82 (87%) different tumor types, and 58 entities (71%) had at least one tumor with a strong positivity. In normal tissues, a particularly strong expression was found in normal squamous epithelium of various organs, goblet and columnar cells of the gastrointestinal tract, and in hepatocytes. The highly standardized analysis of most human cancer types resulted in a ranking order of tumors according to the frequency and levels of CD138 expression. CD138 immunostaining was highest in squamous cell carcinomas such as from the esophagus (100%), cervix uteri (79.5%), lung (85.7%), vagina (89.7%) or vulva (73.3%), and in invasive urothelial cancer (76.2%). In adenocarcinomas, CD138 was also high in lung (82.9%) and colorectal cancer (85.3%) but often lower in pancreas (73.3%), stomach (54.2% in intestinal type), or prostate carcinomas (16.3%). CD138 expression was usually low or absent in germ cell tumors, sarcomas, endocrine tumors including thyroid cancer, and neuroendocrine tumors. In summary, the preferential expression in squamous cell carcinomas of various sites makes these cancers prime targets for anti-CD138 treatments once these might become available. Abundant expression in many different normal tissues might pose obstacles to exploiting CD138 as a therapeutic target, however.

The transcriptional factor ZEB1 represses Syndecan 1 expression in prostate cancer

Syndecan 1 (SDC-1) is a cell surface proteoglycan with a significant role in cell adhesion, maintaining epithelial integrity. SDC1 expression is inversely related to aggressiveness in prostate cancer (PCa). During epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), loss of epithelial markers is mediated by transcriptional repressors such as SNAIL, SLUG, or ZEB1/2 that bind to E-box promoter sequences of specific genes. The effect of these repressors on SDC-1 expression remains unknown. Here, we demonstrated that SNAIL, SLUG and ZEB1 expressions are increased in advanced PCa, contrarily to SDC-1. SNAIL, SLUG and ZEB1 also showed an inversion to SDC-1 in prostate cell lines. ZEB1, but not SNAIL or SLUG, represses SDC-1 as demonstrated by experiments of ectopic expression in epithelial prostate cell lines. Inversely, expression of ZEB1 shRNA in PCa cell line increased SDC-1 expression. The effect of ZEB1 is transcriptional since ectopic expression of this gene represses SDC-1 promoter activity and ZEB1 binds to the SDC-1 promoter as detected by ChIP assays. An epigenetic mark associated to transcription repression H3K27me3 was bound to the same sites that ZEB1. In conclusion, this study identifies ZEB1 as a key repressor of SDC-1 during PCa progression and point to ZEB1 as a potentially diagnostic marker for PCa.

A subset of high Gleason grade prostate carcinomas contain a large burden of prostate cancer syndecan-1 positive stromal cells

BACKGROUND

There is a pressing need to identify prognostic and predictive biomarkers for prostate cancer to aid treatment decisions in both early and advanced disease settings. Syndecan-1, a heparan sulfate proteoglycan, has been previously identified as a potential prognostic biomarker by multiple studies at the tissue and serum level. However, other studies have questioned its utility.

METHODS

Anti-Syndecan-1 immunohistochemistry was carried out on 157 prostate tissue samples (including cancerous, adjacent normal tissue, and non-diseased prostate) from three independent cohorts of patients. A population of Syndecan-1 positive stromal cells was identified and the number and morphological parameters of these cells quantified. The identity of the Syndecan-1-positive stromal cells was assessed by multiplex immunofluorescence using a range of common cell lineage markers. Finally, the burden of Syndecan-1 positive stromal cells was tested for association with clinical parameters.

RESULTS

We identified a previously unreported cell type which is marked by Syndecan-1 expression and is found in the stroma of prostate tumors and adjacent normal tissue but not in non-diseased prostate. We call these cells Prostate Cancer Syndecan-1 Positive (PCSP) cells. Immunofluorescence analysis revealed that the PCSP cell population did not co-stain with markers of common prostate epithelial, stromal, or immune cell populations. However, morphological analysis revealed that PCSP cells are often elongated and displayed prominent lamellipodia, suggesting they are an unidentified migratory cell population. Analysis of clinical parameters showed that PCSP cells were found with a frequency of 20-35% of all tumors evaluated, but were not present in non-diseased normal tissue. Interestingly, a subset of primary Gleason 5 prostate tumors had a high burden of PCSP cells.

CONCLUSIONS

The current study identifies PCSP cells as a novel, potentially migratory cell type, which is marked by Syndecan-1 expression and is found in the stroma of prostate carcinomas, adjacent normal tissue, but not in non-diseased prostate. A subset of poor prognosis high Gleason grade 5 tumors had a particularly high PCSP cell burden, suggesting an association between this unidentified cell type and tumor aggressiveness.

Soluble syndecan-1 (SDC1) serum level as an independent pre-operative predictor of cancer-specific survival in prostate cancer

BACKGROUND

PSA-screening detects many cases of clinically non-aggressive prostate cancer (PC) leading to significant overtreatment. Therefore, pre-operatively available prognostic biomarkers are needed to help therapy decisions. Syndecan-1 (SDC1) is a promising prognostic tissue marker in several cancers including PC but serum levels of shedded SDC1-ectodomain (sSDC1) have not been assessed in PC.

METHODS

A total of 150 patients with PC were included in this study (n = 99 serum samples, n = 103 paraffin-embedded samples (FFPE), n = 52 overlap). SDC1 protein expression and cellular localization was evaluated by immunohistochemistry (IHC), while sSDC1 serum concentrations were measured by ELISA. Serum sSDC1 levels were compared to those of MMP7, which is known to be a protease involved in SDC1 ectodomain-shedding. Clinico-pathological and follow-up data were collected and correlated with SDC1 tissue and serum levels. Disease (PC)-specific (DSS) and overall-survival (OS) were primary endpoints.

RESULTS

Median follow-up was 167 months in the serum- and 146 months in the FFPE-group. SDC1-reactivity was higher in non-neoplastic prostate glands compared to PC. In addition, cytoplasmatic, but not membranous SDC1 expression was enhanced in PC patients with higher Gleason-score >6 PC (P = 0.016). Soluble SDC1-levels were higher in patients with Gleason-score >6 (P = 0.043) and metastatic disease (P = 0.022) as well as in patients with progressed disease treated with palliative transurethral resection (P = 0.002). In addition, sSDC1 levels were associated with higher MMP7 serum concentration (P = 0.005). In univariable analyses, only sSDC1-levels exhibited a trend to unfavorable DSS (P = 0.077). In a multivariable pre-operative model, high pre-operative sSDC1-level (>123 ng/ml) proved to be an independent marker of adverse OS (P = 0.048) and DSS (P = 0.020).

CONCLUSIONS

The present study does not confirm the prognostic relevance of SDC1-IHC. The significant higher sSDC1 serum levels in advanced cases of PC, suggest that SDC1 shedding might be involved in PC progression. Additionally, high sSDC1-level proved to be an independent factor of adverse OS and DSS in a multivariable pre-operative model, making evaluation of sSDC1-levels a promising tool for pre-operative risk-stratification and/or therapy monitoring. Prostate 76:977-985, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Prostate cancer cells specifically reorganize epithelial cell-fibroblast communication through proteoglycan and junction pathways

Microenvironment and stromal fibroblasts are able to inhibit tumor cell proliferation both through secreted signaling molecules and direct cell-cell interactions but molecular mechanisms of these effects remain unclear. In this study, we investigated a role of cell-cell contact-related molecules (protein ECM components, proteoglycans (PGs) and junction-related molecules) in intercellular communications between the human TERT immortalized fibroblasts (BjTERT fibroblasts) and normal (PNT2) or cancer (LNCaP, PC3, DU145) prostate epithelial cells. It was shown that BjTERT-PNT2 cell coculture resulted in significant decrease of both BjTERT and PNT2 proliferation rates and reorganization of transcriptional activity of cell-cell contact-related genes in both cell types. Immunocytochemical staining revealed redistribution of DCN and LUM in PNT2 cells and significant increase of SDC1 at the intercellular contact zones between BjTERT and PNT2 cells, suggesting active involvement of the PGs in cell-cell contacts and contact inhibition of cell proliferation. Unlike to PNT2 cells, PC3 cells did not respond to BjTERT in terms of PGs expression, moderately increased transcriptional activity of junctions-related genes (especially tight junction) and failed to establish PC3-BjTERT contacts. At the same time, PC3 cells significantly down-regulated junctions-related genes (especially focal adhesions and adherens junctions) in BjTERT fibroblasts resulting in visible preference for homotypic PC3-PC3 over heterotypic PC3-BjTERT contacts and autonomous growth of PC3 clones. Taken together, the results demonstrate that an instructing role of fibroblasts to normal prostate epithelial cells is revoked by cancer cells through deregulation of proteoglycans and junction molecules expression and overall disorganization of fibroblast-cancer cell communication.

Molecular and clinical profiles of syndecan-1 in solid and hematological cancer for prognosis and precision medicine

Syndecan-1 (SDC1, CD138) is a key cell surface adhesion molecule essential for maintaining cell morphology and interaction with the surrounding microenvironment. Deregulation of SDC1 contributes to cancer progression by promoting cell proliferation, metastasis, invasion and angiogenesis, and is associated with relapse through chemoresistance. SDC1 expression level is also associated with responses to chemotherapy and with prognosis in multiple solid and hematological cancers, including multiple myeloma and Hodgkin lymphoma. At the tissue level, the expression levels of SDC1 and the released extracellular domain of SDC1 correlate with tumor malignancy, phenotype, and metastatic potential for both solid and hematological tumors in a tissue-specific manner. The SDC1 expression profile varies among cancer types, but the differential expression signatures between normal and cancer cells in epithelial and stromal compartments are directly associated with aggressiveness of tumors and patient's clinical outcome and survival. Therefore, relevant biomarkers of SDC signaling may be useful for selecting patients that would most likely respond to a particular therapy at the time of diagnosis or perhaps for predicting relapse. In addition, the reciprocal expression signature of SDC between tumor epithelial and stromal compartments may have synergistic value for patient selection and the prediction of clinical outcome.

Increased SNAIL expression and low syndecan levels are associated with high Gleason grade in prostate cancer

Prostate cancer (PC) is a leading male oncologic malignancy wideworld. During malignant transformation, normal epithelial cells undergo genetic and morphological changes known as epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Several regulatory genes and specific marker proteins are involved in PC EMT. Recently, syndecans have been associated with malignancy grade and Gleason score in PC. Considering that SNAIL is mainly a gene repressor increased in PC and that syndecan promoters have putative binding sites for this repressor, we propose that SNAIL might regulate syndecan expression during PC EMT. The aim of this study was to analyze immunochemically the expression of SNAIL, syndecans 1 and 2 and other EMT markers in a tissue microarray (TMA) of PC samples and PC cell lines. The TMAs included PC samples of different Gleason grade and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) samples, as non-malignant controls. PC3 and LNCaP cell lines were used as models of PC representing different tumorigenic capacities. Semi-quantitative immunohistochemistry was performed on TMAs and fluorescence immunocytochemistry and western blot analysis were conducted on cell cultures. Results show that SNAIL exhibits increased expression in high Gleason specimens compared to low histological grade and BPH samples. Accordingly, PC3 cells show higher SNAIL expression levels compared to LNCaP cells. Conversely, syndecan 1, similarly to E-cadherin (a known marker of EMT), shows a decreased expression in high Gleason grades samples and PC3 cells. Interestingly, syndecan 2 shows no changes associated to histological grade. It is concluded that increased SNAIL levels in advanced PC are associated with low expression of syndecan 1. The mechanism by which SNAIL regulates the expression of syndecan 1 remains to be investigated.

Overexpression of transglutaminase 4 and prostate cancer progression: a potential predictor of less favourable outcomes

Transglutaminase 4 has been shown to enhance various biological properties of prostate cancer cells, e.g., cell-matrix adhesion, invasiveness and the epithelial-mesenchymal transition. The objectives of this study were to investigate the associations between transglutaminase 4 expression and the established features and biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer. Transglutaminase 4 immunostaining was performed on a tissue microarray. The expression of transglutaminase 4 was evaluated by a scoring method based on the intensity and extent of staining. The clinical and pathological information was obtained through a review of medical records. Follow-up data were obtained by consulting the hospital medical records and the prostate cancer database of our department and by contacting patients or family members. We then compared the transglutaminase 4 expression levels between the prostate cancer tissues and the paracarcinoma tissues and evaluated the correlation of transglutaminase 4 expression with the clinical parameters and biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer. Our results indicated that the transglutaminase 4 staining was significantly higher in tumour tissue than in paracarcinoma tissue (P<0.001) and was positively associated with higher Gleason score (P<0.001) and higher prostate-specific antigen level (P=0.005). Patients with transglutaminase 4 overexpression experienced shorter biochemical recurrence-free survival after surgery (P=0.042) in the univariate analysis but not in the multivariate analysis (P=0.139), which indicated that transglutaminase 4 may serve as a potential predictor of biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer.

Proteoglycan expression in normal human prostate tissue and prostate cancer

Proteoglycans (PGs) are expressed on the cell surface and extracellular matrix of all mammalian cells and tissues, playing an important role in cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions and signaling. Changes in the expression and functional properties of individual PGs in prostate cancer are shown, although common patterns of PGs expression in normal and tumour prostate tissues remain unknown. In this study, expression of cell surface and stromal proteoglycans (glypican-1, perlecan, syndecan-1, aggrecan, versican, NG2, brevican, decorin, and lumican) in normal tissue and prostate tumours was determined by RT-PCR analysis and immunostaining with core protein- and GAG-specific antibodies. In normal human prostate tissue, versican, decorin, and biglycan were predominant proteoglycans localised in tissue stroma, and syndecan-1 and glypican-1 were expressed mainly by epithelial cells. In prostate tumours, complex changes in proteoglycans occur, with a common trend towards decrease of decorin and lumican expression, overall increase of syndecan-1 and glypican-1 expression in tumour stroma along with its disappearance in tumour epithelial cells, and aggrecan and NG2 expressions in some prostate tumours. All the changes result in the highly individual proteoglycan expression patterns in different prostate tumours, which may be potentially useful as molecular markers for prostate cancer personalised diagnosis and treatment.

Effects of saikosaponin-d on syndecan-2, matrix metalloproteinases and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-2 in rats with hepatocellular carcinoma

OBJECTIVE

To investigate effects of Saikosaponin D (SSd) on syndecan-2, matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-2 (TIMP-2) in livers of rat with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

METHODS

Male SD rats were divided into control (n=10), model (n=20) and SSd (n=20) groups, and model and SSd groups given intragastric 0.2% (w/v) N-diethylnitrosamine to induce HCC. SSd group received 0.03% (w/v) SSd in saline. Liver samples were analysed immunohistochemically for syndecan-2, MMP-2, MMP-13 and TIMP-2 at 16 weeks.

RESULTS

The model group had more malignant nodules than the SSd group; all model-group HCC cells were grade III; SSd-group HCC cells were grades I-II. Controls showed normal hepatic cell phenotypes and no syndecan-2+ staining. Syndecan-2+ staining was greater in the model group (35.2%, P < or = 0.001) than in controls or the SSd group (16.5%, P < or = 0.001). The model group had more intense MMP-2+ staining than controls (0.37 vs 0.27, P< or =0.01) or the SSd group (0.31 vs 0.37, P< or =0.05); and higher MMP-13+ staining (72.55%) than in controls (12.55%, P< or =0.001) and SSd group (20.18%, P< or =0.01). The model group also had more TIMP-2+ staining (57.2%) than controls (20.9%, P< or =0.001) and SSd group (22.7%, P< or=0.001). Controls and SSd group showed no difference in TIMP-2+ rates.

CONCLUSION

SSd inhibited HCC development, and downregulated expression of syndecan-2, MMP-2, MMP-13 and TIMP-2 in rat HCC liver tissue.