[Proliferative and apoptotic markers in prostate carcinoma in relation to androgen receptor]

Prostate carcinoma, one of the most frequent male malignancies, is in certain stages of its development significantly influenced by androgens. Therefore, we carried out a retrospective study on a set of 130 patients with nongeneralized, localized prostate carcinoma (stage T1-T2, PSA up to 25 ng/ml). We determined immunohistochemically the expression of proliferation markers PCNA and Ki67, Bax, p53, Bcl-2, p21waf1, p27kiP1 and compared them with the expression of the androgen receptor (AR). Multivariation statistical analysis of the results using the chi-square test with Pearson's correction and variability analysis using the SPSS 8.0 software program showed a strong correlation of the PCNA and Ki67 proliferation markers with the expression of hormonal dependence and apoptosis markers. The expression of PCNA correlated strongly with p27 kip1 and Bax, while the expression of Ki67 correlated most strongly with p27 kip1 and Bcl-2. The expression of p27 kip1 correlated with the expression of androgen receptor, PCNA, Ki67 as well as Bcl-2. None of the observed markers correlated significantly with Gleason's score. We did not find substantial significant relation between the observed markers and the expression of p53 and p21 waf1. The results indicate a significant role of the expression of p27 kip1 protein in regulating proliferative activity and hormonal responsiveness in the initial stage of prostate carcinoma.