Chemerin, OPG, and WPOI as Markers of Bone Invasion and Prognosis in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

The objective of our study was to examine the role of Chemerin, Chemokine like receptor 1 (CMKLR1), receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-Β ligand (RANKL), and Osteoprotegerin (OPG) in the development of bone-invasive oral squamous cell carcinoma.

In order to evaluate the presence of these markers at the interface between bone and tumor, immunohistochemical analyses were conducted using tissue microarrays obtained from 164 patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma growing in close contact with jaw bone.

The findings indicate that Chemerin and Osteoprotegerin are notably reduced in tumors that have invaded the bone. Only 21 (32.8%) of pT4a tumors (defined as bone invasive) had a high Osteoprotegerin expression, whereas 36 (66.7%) of pT2 and pT3 tumors demonstrated high expression of Osteoprotegerin (p < 0.001). Similarly, we saw a downregulation of Chemerin in 50 (60.2%) bone invasive oral squamous cell carcinoma samples compared to 28 (35.0%) in non-bone invasive tumors (p = 0.002). In addition, our data indicated a connection between worst pattern of invasion score and less favorable overall and disease-specific survival (p = 0.007 and p = 0.024, respectively).

The findings suggest that Chemerin and Osteoprotegerin have the potential to serve as indicators for bone invasion in oral squamous cell carcinoma, which could have significant implications for diagnosis and treatment approaches.