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Updated: May 13, 2026
Isolation of Proximal Fluids to Investigate the Tumor Microenvironment of Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma
Published on: November 5, 2020
Differences in transcript levels of ABC transporters between pancreatic adenocarcinoma and nonneoplastic tissues
Beatrice Mohelnikova-Duchonova1, Veronika Brynychova, Martin Oliverius
1Department of Toxicogenomics, National Institute of Public Health, Prague, Czech Republic. mohelnikova@szu.cz
Objectives:
The aim of this study was to evaluate transcript levels of all 49 human ATP-binding cassette transporters (ABCs) in one of the most drug-resistant cancers, namely, the pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Association of ABCs levels with clinical-pathologic characteristics and KRAS mutation status was followed as well.
Methods:
Tumors and adjacent nonneoplastic tissues were obtained from 32 histologically verified PDAC patients. The transcript profile of ABCs was assessed using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction with a relative standard curve. KRAS mutations in exon 2 were assessed by high-resolution melting analysis and sequencing.
Results:
Most ABCs were deregulated in PDAC and 10 ABCs were associated with clinical-pathologic characteristics. KRAS mutations did not change the global expression profile of ABCs.
Conclusions:
The expression of ABC transporters was significantly deregulated in PDAC tumors when compared to nonmalignant tissues. The observed up-regulation of ABCB4, ABCB11, ABCC1, ABCC3, ABCC5, ABCC10, and ABCG2 in tumors may contribute to the generally poor treatment response of PDAC. The up-regulation of ABCA1, ABCA7, and ABCG1 implicates a serious impairment of cellular cholesterol homeostasis in PDAC. On the other hand, the observed down-regulation of ABCA3, ABCC6, ABCC7, and ABCC8 suggests a possible role of stem cells in the development and progression of PDAC.
