Evaluarea exprimării imunohistochimice a galectinei-3 în tumori prostatice benigne şi maligne

Abstract

Galectin-3 (Gal-3), a β-galactosidase-binding protein, has been implicated in a variety of biological functions, including cell proliferation and differentiation, tumor cell adhesion, angiogenesis, apoptosis, tumor progression, and metastasis. To investigate the role of Gal-3 in the development and progression of prostate tumors, an immunohistochemical study with monoclonal anti-Gal-3 antibody in a series of 45 benign prostatic hyperplasias, as well as in 40 primary and metastatic prostate carcinomas was conducted. Gal-3 was detected mainly in the cytoplasm of epithelial cells in all samples of benign prostatic hyperplasia and prostate cancer and showed a heterogenous immunoreactivity. The level of expression of Gal-3 increased significantly in carcinomas, but there were no differences between Gal-3 levels in tumors with or without metastasis. These results indicate that Gal-3 has an important role in prostate tumor progression and suggest further studies.