Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 30, 2026

Methods to Discover Alternative Promoter Usage and Transcriptional Regulation of Murine Bcrp1
Published on: May 27, 2016
αB-Crystallin is a Novel Oncoprotein Associated with Poor Prognosis in Breast Cancer
Hae Sung Kim1, Younok Lee, Young Ah Lim
1Division of Breast and Endocrine Surgery, Hallym Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, Anyang, Korea.
Purpose:
αB-crystallin, a small heat shock protein, is an anti-apoptotic protein associated with aggressive tumor behavior. A recent study revealed that αB-crystallin is overexpressed in a metastatic variant of the GI101A human breast carcinoma cell line. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether αB-crystallin is related to other breast tumor markers and can predict a breast cancer prognosis.
Methods:
Eighty-two patients who underwent breast cancer surgery at Hallym Sacred Heart Hospital were enrolled. αB-crystallin expression was determined by immunohistochemical staining. Estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor (PR), human epidermal growth factor receptor, lymphovascular invasion, histological grade, other tumor markers and time to recurrence were compared with αB-crystallin expression.
Results:
αB-crystallin expression in breast cancer tissues was associated with PR (p=0.030), the number of metastatic lymph nodes (pN) (p=0.020), lymphovascular invasion (p=0.022), histological grade (p=0.004) and triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) (p=0.004). αB-crystallin expression significantly decreased time to recurrence (p=0.039).
Conclusion:
The results revealed a strong relationship between αB-crystallin and poor prognostic factors such as the number of metastatic lymph nodes (especially pN2), TNBC, and rapid time to recurrence. We believe that αB-crystallin could be a novel oncoprotein biomarker of a poor prognosis in breast cancer.
Related Concept Videos
Abnormal Proliferation
The Retinoblastoma Gene
The first-ever tumor suppressor gene called Rb was identified in retinoblastoma - a rare eye tumor in children. In inherited forms of the disease, a child inherits one defective copy of the Rb gene, which predisposes them to retinoblastoma. However,...
Inhibition of Cdk Activity
The Intrinsic Apoptotic Pathway
Anaphase Promoting Complex
