Adenosine deaminase complexing protein in cancer studies
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Abstract:
ADCP is a dimeric glycoprotein of about 200KD, for which the physiological role is still obscure. This protein occurs mainly in a membrane bound form in various human tissues. In this paper we review the current literature on ADCP in cancer studies. Soluble ADCP was described to be consistently decreased or absent in cancers of lung, liver, kidney and colon. These findings could not be confirmed by immunohistochemical and quantitative biochemical studies in a series of colorectal-, prostatic-, and renal carcinomas. Only in a third of these tumors a decrease could be demonstrated, whereas in the other cases unaltered or even increased amounts were observed. However, in virally transformed human fibroblasts a consistent decrease or complete absence of ADCP was seen, while primary fibroblasts were found to contain high amounts of this protein. Recently, the use of ADCP as a differentiation marker in colonic cancer has been advocated. Furthermore the presence of ADCP in the serum of renal adenocarcinoma patients was found to be indicative of a better chance of five year survival. These studies suggest that ADCP may be a differentiation marker useful for immunohistochemical characterization of colonic and renal carcinomas as well as a serum marker useful for follow-up studies of these types of cancer, analogous to CEA. Finally, ADCP has been found to be selectively expressed by certain T-cell subsets and henceforth may be useful in the studies on leukemias.
Insights
Altered levels of adhesion-dependent cell adhesion molecule (ADCP) were investigated in various cancers. While some studies suggest ADCP is a useful cancer marker, findings remain inconsistent across different tumor types.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Oncology
- Immunology
Background:
- Adhesion-dependent cell adhesion molecule (ADCP) is a 200KD dimeric glycoprotein found in human tissues, primarily membrane-bound.
- Its physiological role remains largely unknown.
- Previous research suggested altered ADCP levels in various cancers, but findings were inconsistent.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and analyze the current literature on ADCP in cancer studies.
- To evaluate the potential of ADCP as a diagnostic and prognostic marker in different human carcinomas.
- To explore ADCP's role in cell differentiation and its expression in specific T-cell subsets.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of ADCP in cancer studies.
- Immunohistochemical and quantitative biochemical analyses of ADCP in colorectal, prostatic, and renal carcinomas.
- Comparison of ADCP levels in primary versus virally transformed human fibroblasts.
- Analysis of ADCP expression in T-cell subsets.
Main Results:
- Soluble ADCP was reported decreased in lung, liver, kidney, and colon cancers, but these findings were not consistently confirmed in colorectal, prostatic, and renal carcinomas.
- ADCP levels were decreased in virally transformed fibroblasts but high in primary fibroblasts.
- ADCP presence in serum of renal adenocarcinoma patients correlated with better five-year survival.
- ADCP is selectively expressed by certain T-cell subsets.
Conclusions:
- ADCP's role as a consistent tumor marker across all investigated cancers is uncertain.
- ADCP may serve as a differentiation marker for colonic and renal carcinomas.
- Serum ADCP levels could be a prognostic marker for renal adenocarcinoma patients.
- ADCP's selective T-cell expression suggests potential in leukemia research.