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CD44 expression in human gliomas
Stella Maris Ranuncolo1, Virginia Ladeda, Sergio Specterman
1Research Area of the Institute of Oncology Angel H. Roffo, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Journal of Surgical Oncology
|January 5, 2002
Summary
Overexpression of standard CD44 (CD44s) in gliomas correlates with invasiveness but not survival. This suggests CD44s may drive tumor spread, though it
Area of Science:
- Neuro-oncology
- Molecular biology
- Cancer research
Background:
- Glioma cell invasion is linked to binding brain extracellular matrix hyaluronic acid (HA).
- CD44 is the primary HA receptor, existing as standard (CD44s) and variant (CD44v) forms.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate CD44s and CD44v isoform expression in gliomas.
- To correlate expression with clinico-anatomopathological factors and patient survival.
Main Methods:
- Immunohistochemical analysis of CD44s, CD44v3, v4/5, and v6 in 84 gliomas.
- Statistical correlation with clinical and pathological data.
Main Results:
- CD44v isoforms were not detected. CD44s was expressed in 83.3% of gliomas.
- High CD44s expression was more frequent in Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) than Low-Grade Astrocytoma (LGA).
- CD44s expression correlated with histological grade and worse survival, but was not an independent prognostic factor.
Conclusions:
- Overexpressed CD44s may contribute to glioma invasiveness.
- CD44s is not an independent predictor of patient survival in gliomas.