Expression and significance of HERG protein in Cajal interstitial cells of gallbladder tissue in patients with gallbladder stones / 中华肝胆外科杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To investigate the expression and significance of human ether-a-go-go related gene (HERG) protein in interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) in patients with gallbladder stones.Methods:The gallbladder tissues of 60 patients with gallbladder diseases who underwent cholecystectomy from January 2018 to December 2020 in the Faculty of Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery, Chinese PLA General Hospital were collected, including 36 males and 24 females, aged (46.0±14.0) years. They were divided into two groups according to whether there were gallstones gallstone group and control group (patients with gallbladder polyps and gallbladder adenomyosis), with 30 cases in each group. Color ultrasound was used to detect and calculate the gallbladder contraction rate. The neck, body and bottom tissues of the gallbladder were excised and sectioned. The expression of HERG protein and CD117 ( marker of ICC) was detected by immunofluorescence staining, immunohistochemistry and Western blot.Results:The gallbladder contraction rate in the gallstone group was (65.8±4.1)%, lower than that in the control group (73.8±5.3)%, with a statistically significant difference ( t=4.14, P<0.001). Immunohistochemistry showed that HERG protein was mainly distributed in the mucosal layer of gallbladder tissue, which was pale brown. The relative expression of HERG protein at the bottom of gallbladder in the gallstone group was (0.293±0.102), lower than that in the control group (0.694±0.059), with a statistically significant difference ( t=3.38, P=0.027). Immunofluorescence staining showed that HERG protein was mainly distributed in ICC of gallbladder epithelium. HERG protein expression in ICC at the bottom of gallbladder in gallstone group was lower than that in control group, while HERG protein expression at the neck and body of gallbladder had no significant difference. Conclusion:There are ICC and HERG protein in gallbladder tissue of patients with gallstone. The decrease of gallbladder contraction rate may be related to the decrease of HERG protein expression in ICC in gallbladder bottom tissue.