behavioral significance of actin in mammary carcinoma

ABSTRACT

31 radical mastectomy specimens comprising 13 invasive lobular and 18 invasive duct carcinomas, in addition to 6 normal breast tissue samples, were stained by haematoxylin and eosin and peroxidase labelled anti-actin monoclonal antibodies, for the determination of the actin content of such neoplasms and its relationship to the behavior of the tumour. It was noted that the more aggressive types as duct carcinomas, high grade tumours and those which have already widely spread [stages III-IV], contained the greatest amount of intracytoplasmic actin in the tumour cells, indicating a possible significant active role for such cytoskeletal proteins in helping to increase the motility of tumour cells and in invading their surrounding milieu