RESUMO
Objective To investigate the genomic amplification of the human telomerase RNA component (hTERC) gene in cervical cytology and evaluate its role in screening of cervical lesions. Methods A total of 301 cases were recruited, with liquid-based cytology diaghoses as normal (n=203), atypical squamous cells (ASC, n=66), low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions ( LSIL,n=18), and high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions ( HSIL, n=14). Following cytological examination, the slides were analyzed using a two-color fluorescence in aitu hybridization ( FISH ) probe targeted to chromosome 3q26 containing hTERC. The hTERC findings were compared to the cytologic and histologie results, as well as high-risk human papilloma viruses (HPV) results. Results Genomie amplification of hTERC was found in 3.0% (6/203)of normal specimens, 21.2% (14/66) of ASC, 44.4% (8/18) of LSIL and 92.9% (13/14) of HSIL, with a significant difference in each pair wise (all P<0.05). Significantly more cells with 3q26 gain were found in cervical intraepithelial lesion (CIN) Ⅱ than in CIN Ⅰ(75.0% vs. 20.0% ), as well as in CIN Ⅲ (86.7% vs. 20.0% ) and squamous cervical cancer (SCC) than in CIN Ⅰ (100.0% vs. 20.0%) ( all P<0.01). The sensitivity of hTERC amplification was significantly higher than cytological screening (82.6% vs. 17.4%, P<0.01), and its specificity was higher than high-risk HPV test (67.8%-73.5% vs. 25.6%-27.7%, P<0.01) in the diagnosis of HSIL (CIN Ⅱ - Ⅲ). The abnormal hTERC signal type mostly was 2:3 in CIN Ⅰ (84.9% ) ; whereas in CIN Ⅱ-Ⅲ, 2: 3, 2:4 and 4:4 accounted for 44.6%, 24.8% and 17.8%, respectively. Conclusion Testing the gain of chromosome 3q26 in cytological specimens using specific probe for hTERC is powerful in screening of HSIL, and the amplification patterns of 2:4 and 4:4 may serve as potential prognosis markers.
