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Published on: May 22, 2016

Involvement of aberrant glycosylation in thyroid cancer

Eiji Miyoshi1, Yasuhiro Ito, Yoko Miyoshi

  • 1Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Clinical Investigation, Graduate School Medicine, Osaka University, 1-7 Yamada-oka Suita 565-0871, Japan.

Journal of Oncology
|July 24, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Glycosylation, a key protein modification, impacts cell behavior and disease. This review explores oligosaccharide roles in thyroid cancer development and prognosis, linking glycan structures to histopathology.

Area of Science:

  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology
  • Oncology

Background:

  • Glycosylation is a prevalent posttranslational modification in eukaryotes, affecting nearly half of all proteins.
  • Altered oligosaccharide structures are implicated in critical physiological and pathological processes, including cancer.
  • Functional glycomics studies the structure and function of glycans, gaining importance in life sciences.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review previous research on oligosaccharides and thyroid cancer.
  • To discuss the potential role of oligosaccharides in thyroid cancer development (carcinogenesis).

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies on oligosaccharides and thyroid cancer.
  • Analysis of histopathological differences and associated glycosyltransferase expression in thyroid cancer types.

Main Results:

  • Thyroid cancer subtypes exhibit distinct biological characteristics and prognoses.
  • Significant differences exist in oligosaccharide structures and glycosyltransferase expression across thyroid cancer histologies.

Conclusions:

  • Oligosaccharide structures and their expression patterns are closely linked to thyroid cancer subtypes.
  • Further investigation into the function of oligosaccharides in thyroid carcinogenesis is warranted.

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