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Expression of serine peptidase inhibitor Kunitz type 1 in differentiated thyroid cancer

Chien-Liang Liu1,2, Po-Sheng Yang1, Ming-Nan Chien3

  • 1Department of Surgery, MacKay Memorial Hospital and Mackay Medical College, 92, Section 2, Chung-Shan North Road, Taipei, 10449, Taiwan.

Histochemistry and Cell Biology
|March 14, 2018
PubMed

Insights

SPINT1 (serine protease inhibitor) is overexpressed in differentiated thyroid cancer, correlating with invasive features and recurrence risk. This suggests SPINT1 may drive thyroid cancer progression.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • SPINT1 (serine protease inhibitor) is a Kunitz-type inhibitor of proteases like HGF activator and matriptase.
  • SPINT1 modulates HGF/MET signaling, implicated in cancer development.
  • Upregulation of SPINT1 has been observed in various cancer types.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate SPINT1 expression patterns in differentiated thyroid cancer.
  • To determine the correlation between SPINT1 expression and clinicopathological features of thyroid cancer.
  • To assess the prognostic significance of SPINT1 in differentiated thyroid cancer.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of microarray datasets for SPINT1 gene expression.
  • Quantitative assessment of SPINT1 protein expression using tissue microarrays in 143 patients.
  • Correlation analysis between SPINT1 expression and clinicopathological parameters (invasion, metastasis, TNM stage, recurrence).
  • Validation using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data.

Main Results:

  • SPINT1 was consistently upregulated in differentiated thyroid cancer (papillary and follicular) compared to normal thyroid tissues and benign lesions.
  • Overexpression was less pronounced in anaplastic thyroid cancer.
  • SPINT1 expression correlated significantly with extrathyroidal invasion, lymphovascular invasion, lymph node metastasis, advanced TNM stage, and increased recurrence risk.
  • TCGA data analysis supported these findings.

Conclusions:

  • SPINT1 is frequently overexpressed in differentiated thyroid cancer.
  • SPINT1 overexpression is associated with aggressive clinicopathological features and a higher risk of recurrence.
  • SPINT1 may play a role in promoting an invasive phenotype in differentiated thyroid cancer.
Keywords:
Hepatocyte growth factorInvasionSerine protease inhibitorThyroid cancer

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