Expression of thyroid hormone receptors in intracranial meningiomas

Thyroid hormone has a unique function in human organs. Many of its effects occur at the level of gene expression and are mediated by thyroid hormone receptors (TRs). We investigated the relationship between TRs and the prognosis of meningiomas. We investigated TR expression in human intracranial meningiomas using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Specimens of 25 tumors were obtained by craniotomy from various intracranial meningiomas. We found that the expression of TRs was receptor subtype- and cell type-dependent. Human TR alpha1 (hTR alpha1) was expressed in nine cases, hTR alpha2 was expressed in 14 cases, and both hTR alpha1 and hTR alpha2 were expressed in five cases; hTR beta1 was expressed in nine cases of recurrent or malignant tumors. The expression of hTR beta1 may be an indicator of recurrent or malignant meningiomas.