[Short-term neoadjuvant hormone therapy enhanced expression of clusterin in prostate cancer].

OBJECTIVE: To define changes in clusterin expression following short-term neoadjuvant hormone therapy (NHT) and its biological significance in prostate cancer tissues. METHODS: Twenty-six archival radical prostatectomy (RP) specimens without receiving NHT, 19 needle biopsies and corresponding 19 RP specimens following 3-month NHT, were subjected to immunohistochemical clusterin staining. RESULTS: Staining for clusterin was mainly found in cytoplasm and part of extracellular matrix. Clusterin expression was significantly greater in RP specimens with preoperative NHT (t = 2.91, P < 0.01); Needle biopsies obtained before NHT consistently demonstrated lower staining intensity (1.42 +/- 0.51) than corresponding RP specimens (2.16 +/- 0.60) following 3-month NHT (t = 7.10, P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Upregulation of clusterin in part accounts for malignant progression of prostate cancer through its anti-apoptotic action following androgen withdrawal. These findings support that adjuvant therapy targeting clusterin may enhance androgen ablation therapy in advanced prostate cancer.

[Expression of MAGE genes and MAGE gene products in human renal and urinary bladder tumor].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the expression of MAGE-1 MAGE-3 genes and MAGE-3 gene product in renal and urinary bladder tumor, and to explore the possibility of MAGE-1 and MAGE-3 genes encoding proteins or MAGE-3 gene product used as a target for immunotherapy in renal and urinary bladder tumor patients. METHODS: Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction for MAGE-1 and MAGE-3 genes was performed using 39 renal and urinary bladder tumor specimens. Immunohistochemical technique for MAGE-3 antigen was performed using formal infixed paraffin embedded section of 121 renal and urinary bladder tumor specimens. RESULTS: MAGE-1 and MAGE-3 mRNAs were detected in 23(59.0%) and 22(56.4%) of 39 patients with renal and urinary bladder tumor without expression in 10 tumor surrounding tissues.MAGE-3 antigen was detected in 56(46.3%) of 121 patients with renal and urinary bladder tumor without expression in 10 tumor surrounding tissues. The expression rates of MAGE-1 and MAGE-3 mRNA and MAGE-3 gene product were significantly higher in renal and urinary bladder tumors tissues than in tumor surrounding tissues. The frequency of MAGE-3 gene product expression was examined according to clinical stage and differentiation of histopathology. The results revealed no significant differences in MAGE gene product expression among the clinical stage and the grade of differentiation of histopathology according to Logistic Regression test(P>0.05). CONCLUSION: The tumor-specific antigens might be used as molecular markers and targets for human renal and urinary bladder tumor.