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Published on: September 16, 2019
The immunohistochemical expression of BNIP3 protein in non-small-cell lung cancer: a tissue microarray study
Ivo Uberall1, Vítĕzslav Kolek, Jirí Klein
1Laboratory of Molecular Pathology, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacky University, Olomouc, Czech Republic.
Abstract:
Drug resistance is one of the reasons for chemotherapy failure in non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). One of the major mechanisms of drug resistance is the inhibition of chemotherapy-induced apoptosis. Therefore, the study of novel cell death pathways could possibly enable us to overcome resistance to apoptosis in NSCLC. One of the non-caspase types of cell death is autophagy. BNIP3 protein, a Bcl-2 family member, highly expressed in some tumours, plays a key role in the induction of autophagy. In the present study, we investigated the immunohistochemical expression and subcellular localization of BNIP3 in a series of early- and late-stage non-small-cell lung carcinomas and normal bronchial tissues, and correlated this expression with the occurrence of metastasis and survival. BNIP3 was strongly expressed in the nucleus of cancer cells in 16/79 (20.3%) cases. This BNIP3 positivity did not correlate with histological grade, stage, histology type, metastatic potential, or expression of BNIP3 according to median values. No significant correlation was observed between the expression of BNIP3 and the overall survival of NSCLC patients (p = 0.55). Nor did we find any significant correlation between BNIP3 expression and the occurrence of site-specific metastasis (p = 0.85).
Insights
Drug resistance in non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) is a challenge. This study found no significant correlation between BNIP3 protein expression and metastasis or survival in NSCLC patients.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Cell Biology
- Molecular Pathology
Background:
- Drug resistance, particularly resistance to apoptosis, is a major cause of chemotherapy failure in non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC).
- Autophagy, a non-caspase cell death pathway, presents a potential strategy to overcome apoptosis resistance.
- BNIP3, a Bcl-2 family protein, is implicated in inducing autophagy and is found in various tumors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the expression and localization of BNIP3 in NSCLC tissues.
- To correlate BNIP3 expression with clinicopathological features, including metastasis and patient survival.
Main Methods:
- Immunohistochemistry was used to assess BNIP3 expression and subcellular localization in early- and late-stage NSCLC tissues and normal bronchial tissues.
- Statistical analysis was performed to correlate BNIP3 expression with histological grade, stage, histology type, metastatic potential, and survival.
Main Results:
- BNIP3 was expressed in the nucleus of cancer cells in 20.3% of NSCLC cases (16/79).
- BNIP3 expression did not correlate with histological grade, stage, histology type, or metastatic potential.
- No significant correlation was found between BNIP3 expression and overall survival (p=0.55) or site-specific metastasis (p=0.85).
Conclusions:
- BNIP3 nuclear expression is present in a subset of NSCLC.
- BNIP3 expression levels do not appear to be a predictive biomarker for metastasis or survival in this cohort of NSCLC patients.