Related Experiment Video For ALDH3A1 protein
Updated: Jul 4, 2026
Isolation and Characterization of a Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Subpopulation Having Stem Cell Characteristics
Published on: May 11, 2016
Association of ALDH3A1 expression with tumor differentiation, pathological stage, and nodal status in oral squamous
Rida Fatima Khan1, Shazia Akbar Ansari2, Uzma Bukhari3
1Department of Oral Pathology, Dow Dental College, Dow University of Health Sciences, Pakistan.
Objective:
To observe the association between Aldehyde dehydrogenase 3 family member A1 (ALDH3A1) levels with histological grade, pathological stage and nodal status in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma (OSCC).
Methods:
A total of 114 diagnosed OSCC patients who underwent Excisional biopsy with complete neck dissection were recruited in the study in accordance with inclusion criteria. H & E slides were assessed for evaluation of clinicopathological features. Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining method was used to study the expression of ALDH3A1. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 21.0. The chi-square test and Fisher exact test were applied to evaluate the association of ALDH3A1 expression with histological grade, nodal metastasis and pathological tumor stage (pT). All tests were two-sided and a p-value of <0.05 was considered significant.
Results:
This study looked at 114 OSCC patients, most of them were men (76.3 %) with a mean age of 47. The common tumor sites were buccal mucosa (53.5 %) and left side predominance of face (52.6 %). The grades were well (30.7 %), moderate (38.6 %), and 3 poorly differentiated (30.7 %). The expression of ALDH3A1 is significantly strong in the well differentiated compared to the poorly differentiated OSCC (p < 0.001), and presence of nodes involvement compared to no node's involvement (p < 0.001). The findings also suggest that ALDH3A1 expression decreases in more advanced tumors (pT4 stage, p = 0.012), with higher ALDH3A1 levels being associated with earlier stages (pT1, pT2) of OSCC.
Conclusions:
The decrease in expression of ALDH3A1 in a poorly differentiated and advanced stage OSCC compared to its well differentiated and early stage highlights the potential role of this biomarker as an important prognostic tool.
