ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To detect the expression of AT-rich sequence-binding protein (SATB1) mRNA in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and explore the role of SATB1 in the development of NSCLC.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The total RNA was extracted from NSCLC tissues and normal lung tissues and reverse transcribed into cDNA. Real-time fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR was performed for detecting the expression of SATB1 mRNA these tissues.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The expression of SATB1 mRNA was 13-fold higher in NSCLC tissues than in normal lung tissues (P<0.001), and in metastatic and nonmetastatic NSCLC, the expression was 23.63 and 5.57 folds that in normal lung tissues, respectively.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>SATB1 mRNA expression might be associated with the development and lymph node metastasis of NSCLC and may potentially used as an indicator for predicting the prognosis of NSCLC.</p>