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Published on: March 13, 2014
Comparison of fatty acid synthase and cyclooxygenase-2 immunoexpression in embryonal, benign, and malignant
Celeste Sánchez-Romero1, Adalberto Mosqueda-Taylor2, Wilson Delgado-Azañero3
1Oral Pathology Section, Department of Oral Diagnosis, Piracicaba Dental School, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Piracicaba, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Objectives:
The aim of this study was to analyze the immunohistochemical expression of fatty acid synthase (FASN) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in tooth germ (TG), ameloblastoma (AM), ameloblastic carcinoma (AC), ameloblastic fibroma (AF), and ameloblastic fibrosarcoma (AFS).
Study Design:
Immunohistochemistry for FASN and COX-2 was performed in 10 TG, 44 AM, 10 AC, 9 AF, and 5 AFS specimens. The results were analyzed by using the immunoreactive score (IRS) and Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Dunn's post-test.
Results:
Most TG specimens were strongly positive for FASN, whereas COX-2 was weak or negative. All AM and AC specimens expressed both proteins. In AF specimens, FASN and COX-2 were variably expressed in the epithelium and negative in the mesenchyme. In AFS specimens, FASN was strongly positive in the malignant mesenchyme and variable in the epithelium; COX-2 was focal or weak in both components. FASN expression showed significant differences in the following comparisons: TG vs AC, AM vs AC, and AF vs AFS. Differences in COX-2 were significant when comparing TG specimens with AM, AC, and AF specimens.
Conclusions:
The results suggest that FASN and COX-2 overexpression may have a role in the pathogenesis of AM and AC, whereas in AFS, FASN seems to be mainly involved. Further studies are necessary to clarify these mechanisms and their clinical implications.
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