RESUMO
Objective To study the expression and clinical significance of MMP-2 and MMP-9 protein and their relationships in human gastric carcinoma. Methods MMP-2 and MMP-9 protein expression were examined by two-step immunohistochemistry in 96 cases of human gastric carcinoma and paracancerous normal tissue. Results The expression rate of MMP-2 and MMP-9 in gastric carcinoma tissue was 72.9 %(70/96)and 66.7 %(64/96) respectively, which was significantly higher than those in the normal tissue (30.2 % and 31.3 % respectively, P<0.001). The expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 was significantly correlated with site, depth invaded,TNM stage and lymph node metastasis of gastric carcinoma (P <0.05), and not with age, sex, size, histological differentiation of gastric carcinoma(all P>0.05). Conclusion There are close relationships between the expressions of MMP-2, MMP-9 in gastric carcinoma and pathological characteristics in clinic metastasis and prognosis. They may be used as important indexes to judge the biological behavior and prognosis of gastric carcinoma.
