ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: P53, a crucial suppressor of tumor formation, generates multiple isoforms, whose role in disease is still being defined. METHODS: By immunohistochemistry, we studied the expression of P53 protein and relative isoforms in benign papillomas (PA, n=9), inverted papilloma (IPA, n=10) and squamous cell carcinomas (SCC, n=21). RESULTS: In all lesions, P53 isoforms were significantly more expressed than P53. Immunoexpression of P53 matched with P53 isoforms in IPA as well as in SCC. Simultaneous immunoexpression of P53 and related isoforms was double in SCC compared to IPA (10% vs 24%), while expression of P53 isoforms was strongly reduced (70% vs 43%). IPA showed the highest percentage of both reactive cases and immunostained cells expressing P53 isoforms. CONCLUSIONS: We found the higher expression of P53 isoforms in IPA and SCC compared to PA, suggesting their role in local aggressiveness and malignant proliferation in head-neck lesions.
Subject(s)
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/pathology , Head and Neck Neoplasms/pathology , Papilloma, Inverted/pathology , Papilloma/pathology , Tumor Suppressor Protein p53/biosynthesis , Adult , Aged , Biomarkers, Tumor/analysis , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/metabolism , Female , Head and Neck Neoplasms/metabolism , Humans , Immunohistochemistry , Male , Middle Aged , Papilloma/metabolism , Papilloma, Inverted/metabolism , Protein Isoforms/antagonists & inhibitors , Protein Isoforms/biosynthesis , Protein Isoforms/genetics , Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck , Tumor Suppressor Protein p53/antagonists & inhibitors , Tumor Suppressor Protein p53/geneticsABSTRACT
A recent case led the authors to re-examine the clinical characteristics of the cervical ectopia of the major salivary glands. These glands develop in the embryo between the sixth and seventh week, starting with the formation of endodermal invaginations of the branchial section of the floor of the primitive mouth. These cell cords, initially solid, proliferate in the underlying mesenchyme, starting from the opening of the future excretory duct, and subsequently branch and canalize. During embryogenesis, the endodermal invaginations become closely interconnected with the adjacent lymphatic tissue. It is thus possible for lymphoid tissue to migrate into the parotid or the other major salivary glands, or conversely, for salivary tissue to become included in the cervical lymph nodes. Very rarely, ectopic salivary gland tissue can also be found in other unusual locations, including the neck region, as a result of a developmental abnormality of the branchial apparatus. The base of the neck is the most common location, while ectopia of the mid third of the neck is quite rare. The authors discuss the clinical details and diagnostic procedure leading to preoperative diagnosis. This congenital anomaly can, albeit rarely, degenerate into cancer, and surgical excision is thus imperative.
