Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 21, 2026

Assessment of Ovarian Cancer Spheroid Attachment and Invasion of Mesothelial Cells in Real Time
Published on: May 20, 2014
Characterization of active mitogen-activated protein kinase in ovarian serous carcinomas
Chih-Yi Hsu1, Robert Bristow, Moon Seok Cha
1Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, Maryland 21231, USA.
Purpose:
Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) plays a pivotal role in signal transduction. Activation of MAPK is regulated by upstream kinases including KRAS and BRAF, which are frequently mutated in low-grade ovarian serous carcinoma. This study evaluates the expression of active MAPK in ovarian serous carcinomas, with response to treatment and survival.
Experimental Design:
Expression of active MAPK was assessed by immunohistochemistry in 207 cases of ovarian serous tumors. Immunoreactivity was correlated with tumor grade, mutational status of KRAS and BRAF, in vitro drug resistance, and clinical outcome.
Result:
There was a lower frequency of expression of active MAPK in high-grade ovarian serous carcinomas as compared with low-grade serous tumors, including borderline tumors and low-grade serous carcinoma (P < 0.001). Active MAPK was present in all of the 19 low-grade tumors with either KRAS or BRAF mutations as well as in 14 (41%) of 34 tumors with wild-type KRAS and BRAF in both low- and high-grade carcinomas. Expression of active MAPK alone served as a good survival indicator in the 2-year follow-up (P = 0.037) but not in the 5-year follow-up (P = 0.145). However, a combination of expression of active MAPK and in vitro sensitivity of paclitaxel significantly correlated with a better prognosis in 5-year survival rate (P = 0.048) in patients with advanced-stage high-grade serous carcinoma.
Conclusions:
Active MAPK is more frequently expressed in low-grade than in high-grade ovarian serous carcinoma. Active MAPK serves as a good prognostic marker in patients with high-grade serous carcinomas.
More Related Videos
10:27Testing Targeted Therapies in Cancer using Structural DNA Alteration Analysis and Patient-Derived Xenografts
Published on: July 25, 2020
12:42Heterotypic Three-dimensional In Vitro Modeling of Stromal-Epithelial Interactions During Ovarian Cancer Initiation and Progression
Published on: August 28, 2012
Related Concept Videos
mTOR Signaling and Cancer Progression
The mTOR pathway or the...
mTOR Signaling and Cancer Progression
The mTOR pathway or the...
Mitogens and the Cell Cycle
PI3K/mTOR/AKT Signaling Pathway
MAPK Signaling Cascades
Abnormal Proliferation