PCR and immunocytochemistry detection of p27[kip1] in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Chronic B-cell lymphocytic leukemia [B-CLL] is a clonal expansion of B-cells with low proliferative activity in which the cells are arrested in G[0]/G[1] phase of cell cycle. p27[KIP1] is one of the KIP/CIP family of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors [CKIs] which inhibit all cyclin dependent kinases by direct binding to cdk complexes. It is highly expressed when cells are arrested in G[0]/G[1]and its expression declines as cells progress towards S phase. In B-CLL the non-physiological increase in p27[KIP1] appears to be of clinical relevance since high protein levels correlate with poorer survival of patients. To study the expression of p27[KIP1] in B-CLL patients and correlate these results with the clinical and laboratory data of patients. p27[KIP1] expression was determined at the mRNA level by semi-quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction [RT-PCR] and at the protein level by immunocytochemistry in 35 patients with de novo B-CLL and 30 healthy age- and sex-matched control subjects. p27[KIP1] mRNA levels by RT-PCR was significantly higher among CLL patients compared to the control subjects [p<0.001] and was significantly higher among group II CLL patients [lymphocyte count >30 x 10[3]/L] compared to group I CLL patients [lymphocyte count

Expression of P27 in prostatic adenocarcinoma

The objective of this study was to evaluate p27 expression in prostatic adenocarcinoma and to assess its association with some morphologic and clinical features. A sample of 69 specimens of prostatic adenocarcinoma were evaluated for p27 expression by quantifying nuclear immunohistochemical staining, p27 expression was tested for association with patient age, family history of prostate cancer and preoperative serum prostate-specific antigen level, p27 expression was analyzed as a continuous variable and the tumors were classified as low expressors [<50% of cells p27 positive] or high expressors [>50% of cells p27 positive] for comparison. Patients with adenocarcinoma that exhibited low p27 expression had higher mean Gleason scores than did high expressors [7 vs. 6.2, respectively]. The evaluation of p27 expression might provide additional prognostic information