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Updated: Jun 11, 2026
Generation and Expansion of Primary, Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Tumor Lines
Published on: April 21, 2022
Secretion of intelectin-1 from malignant pleural mesothelioma into pleural effusion
S Tsuji1, Y Tsuura, T Morohoshi
1Division of Cancer Therapy, Kanagawa Cancer Center Research Institute, 1-1-2 Nakao, Asahi-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 241-0815, Japan. stsuji@gancen.asahi.yokohama.jp
Background:
Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare but fatal tumour. Although most MPM patients show pleural effusion at even the early stage, it is hard to diagnose as MPM at the early stage because a sensitive and reliable diagnostic marker for MPM has not been found in plasma or pleural effusion.
Methods:
In this study, we investigated whether intelectin-1 was specifically contained in MPM cells and the pleural effusion of MPM patient by immunohistochemistry, western blotting, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
Results:
Malignant pleural mesothelioma cell lines, but not lung adenocarcinoma cell lines, secreted intelectin-1. In immunohistochemistry, epithelioid-type MPMs, but neither pleura-invading lung adenocarcinomas nor reactive mesothelial cells near the lung adenocarcinomas, were stained with anti-intelectin antibodies. Pleural effusion of MPM patients contained a higher concentration of intelectin-1 than that of lung cancer patients.
Conclusion:
These results suggest that detection of intelectin-1 may be useful for a differential diagnosis of epithelioid-type MPM in immunohistochemistry and that a high concentration of intelectin-1 in pleural effusion can be used as a new marker for clinical diagnosis of MPM.
Insights
Intelectin-1 shows promise as a diagnostic marker for malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM). Detecting intelectin-1 in pleural effusion may aid in the clinical diagnosis of this rare cancer.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Biomarker Discovery
- Thoracic Surgery
Background:
- Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare and fatal cancer.
- Early diagnosis is challenging due to the lack of sensitive markers in plasma or pleural effusion.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate intelectin-1 as a specific marker for MPM.
- To evaluate its diagnostic potential in pleural effusion and tumor tissues.
Main Methods:
- Immunohistochemistry
- Western blotting
- Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
Main Results:
- Intelectin-1 was secreted by MPM cell lines but not lung adenocarcinoma cell lines.
- Epithelioid-type MPMs showed positive staining for intelectin-1.
- Higher concentrations of intelectin-1 were found in MPM patient pleural effusion compared to lung cancer patients.
Conclusions:
- Intelectin-1 detection may aid in the differential diagnosis of epithelioid-type MPM.
- Elevated intelectin-1 in pleural effusion can serve as a novel clinical diagnostic marker for MPM.
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