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Updated: Mar 11, 2026
A Mouse Model to Investigate the Role of Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts in Tumor Growth
Published on: December 22, 2020
Expression of Fibroblast Activating Protein and Correlation with Histological Grade, Mitotic Index and Ki67
A Giuliano1, R Dos Santos Horta2, F Constantino-Casas1
1University of Cambridge, Department of Veterinary Medicine, Madingley Road, Cambridge, UK.
Abstract:
Fibroblast activating protein (FAP) is a membrane serine protease expressed by activated fibroblasts, particularly tumour associated fibroblasts (TAFs). FAP expression has not been reported in canine mast cell tumours (MCTs). The objective of this study was to evaluate the expression of FAP in TAFs and its correlation with histological grade, mitotic index and Ki67 expression in canine MCTs. FAP expression was evaluated by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in 30 canine MCTs. Twenty-eight (90%) of the MCTs expressed FAP in the stroma, 16 cases showed low to intermediate FAP score and 14 cases had a high FAP score. FAP was correlated positively with both Patnaik (P = 0.007) and Kiupel (P = 0.008) grading systems, mitotic index (P = 0.0008) and Ki67 expression (P = 0.009). High stromal FAP expression could be a potential negative prognostic factor in canine MCTs.
