AZGP-1 immunohistochemical marker in prostate cancer: potential predictive marker of biochemical recurrence in post radical prostatectomy specimens

Appl Immunohistochem Mol Morphol. 2014 Oct;22(9):652-7. doi: 10.1097/PAI.0000000000000015.

Abstract

One of the major challenges in prostate cancer research is to identify prognostic/predictive factors to distinguish aggressive disease from indolent one. To select prognostic/predictive markers of postoperative biochemical recurrence (BCR) that could be easily performed in daily pathology practice, the expression of 6 immunohistochemical markers including zinc-α-2-glycoprotein (AZGP-1), hCAP-D3, mucin 1, vimentin, E-cadherin, and ERG was assessed in a tissue microarray of 400 radical prostatectomy specimens. The expression levels were correlated with clinicopathologic factors and BCR. During the median follow-up period of 55 months, BCR occurred in 70 cases (17.5%). Low expression of AZGP-1 was noted in 76 cases (19.0%), whereas high expression of hCAP-D3, mucin 1, vimentin, and ERG was observed in 205 (51.3%), 81 (20.3%), 33 (8.3%), and 58 (14.5%) cases, respectively. Aberrant E-cadherin expression was noted in 29 cases (7.3%). By univariate analysis, BCR was associated with low expression of AZGP-1, high expression of hCAP-D3, and aberrant expression of E-cadherin. By multivariate analysis, only AZGP-1 remained an independent immunohistochemical factor, in addition to age, preoperative serum prostate-specific antigen level, Gleason score, tumor stage, and resection margin status. These results show that AZGP-1, hCAP-D3, and E-cadherin are potentially useful immunohistochemical markers to predict BCR, and that AZGP-1 can be used as an independent prognostic marker of aggressive prostate cancer.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adipokines
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Cadherins / metabolism
  • Carrier Proteins / metabolism*
  • Glycoproteins / metabolism*
  • Humans
  • Immunohistochemistry / methods
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Mucin-1 / metabolism*
  • Neoplasm Proteins / metabolism*
  • Prostatectomy*
  • Prostatic Neoplasms* / metabolism
  • Prostatic Neoplasms* / pathology
  • Prostatic Neoplasms* / surgery
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Trans-Activators / metabolism
  • Transcriptional Regulator ERG
  • Vimentin / metabolism

Substances

  • AZGP1 protein, human
  • Adipokines
  • Cadherins
  • Carrier Proteins
  • ERG protein, human
  • Glycoproteins
  • MUC1 protein, human
  • Mucin-1
  • Neoplasm Proteins
  • Trans-Activators
  • Transcriptional Regulator ERG
  • Vimentin