An immunohistochemical study of thioredoxin domain-containing 5 expression in gastric adenocarcinoma

Thioredoxin domain-containing 5 (TXNDC5) is overexpressed in a number of human carcinomas. However, the involvement of TXNDC5 in gastric adenocarcinoma remains unclear. In the present study, the immunohistochemical expression and clinicopathological significance of TXNDC5 in gastric adenocarcinoma was investigated. The immunohistochemical expression of TXNDC5 was detected in 54 gastric adenocarcinoma specimens, and the correlation between TXNDC5 and the clinicopathological features was investigated. Of the 54 gastric adenocarcinoma specimens, 30 samples (55.6%) exhibited high TXNDC5 expression. In the adenocarcinoma specimens exhibiting high TXNDC5 expression, the proportion of poorly-differentiated adenocarcinomas was significantly higher than that in specimens exhibiting low TXNDC5 expression (P<0.05). Lymph node metastasis and the depth of tumor invasion in the specimens exhibiting high TXNDC5 expression were significantly higher than that in specimens exhibiting low TXNDC5 expression (P<0.05). The results of a survival analysis revealed that the prognosis of patients exhibiting high TXNDC5 expression was significantly poorer than that of patients exhibiting low TXNDC5 expression (P<0.05). Therefore, the expression of TXNDC5 may correlate with the differentiation, invasion and metastasis of gastric adenocarcinoma. Thus, TXNDC5 may be a tumor-enhancing gene that is involved in gastric cancer.