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Java Web Start based software for automated quantitative nuclear analysis of prostate cancer and benign prostate
Swaroop S Singh1, Desok Kim, James L Mohler
1University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, USA. swaroop@unc.edu
Biomedical Engineering Online
|May 13, 2005
Summary
African Americans with prostate cancer show significantly higher androgen receptor (AR) protein expression than Caucasian Americans. This study highlights differences in AR levels, crucial for prostate cancer research.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Oncology
- Pathology
Background:
- Androgen receptor (AR) is critical in prostate research, necessitating accurate AR protein expression measurement.
- This study compared AR expression in benign and cancerous prostate tissues between African and Caucasian Americans.
Purpose of the Study:
- To demonstrate an automated image analysis system for quantifying AR protein expression.
- To compare AR protein expression levels between African and Caucasian Americans in prostate tissues.
Main Methods:
- Utilized Image Pro Plus software with a custom macro to collect nuclear data.
- Employed Linear Discriminant and Logistic Regression analyses to generate classification coefficients for software independence.
- Quantified AR expression by percentage of immunopositive nuclei, percentage of immunopositive nuclear area, and intensity of AR expression.
Main Results:
- No significant racial differences in AR expression were found in benign prostate hyperplasia.
- Prostate cancer epithelial nuclei in African Americans showed 38% higher AR immunostaining intensity compared to Caucasian Americans (P < 0.05).
- AR immunostaining intensity was similar between races in benign prostate tissues.
Conclusions:
- Measured differences in AR expression intensity in prostate cancer align with prior research.
- Classification coefficients are essential for standardizing AR expression analysis across different institutions and methods.
- A free, automated image analysis system offers broad opportunities for nuclear protein expression research.