Expression of insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 2 in melanocytic lesions.
BACKGROUND: Insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) is one of the most critical proteins required for the survival, migration, and growth of melanoma cells. IGF-binding protein 2 (IGFBP2), which binds and regulates the function of IGF-1, is upregulated in a dose-dependent manner in melanoma cells treated with IGF-1, suggesting a possible role of IGFBP2 in the pathogenesis of melanoma. METHODS: Tissue microarrays were constructed using formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded archival tissue blocks from 94 melanocytic lesions: 20 benign nevi, 20 dysplastic nevi, 23 primary melanomas, and 31 metastatic melanomas. IGFBP2 expression was evaluated immunohistochemically using a polyclonal antibody against the C-terminus of IGFBP2. The number of cells and labeling intensity were assessed semiquantitatively. RESULTS: Positive IGFBP2 labeling was observed in 5.0% of benign nevi, which was significantly lower than in dysplastic nevi (35.0%), primary melanomas (52.2%), or metastatic melanomas (54.8%) (p < 0.05). Among the IGFBP2-positive cases, moderate-to-strong immunostaining was observed in 64.7% of metastatic melanomas and 33.3% of primary melanomas. But none of the dysplastic nevi had moderate-to-strong immunostaining (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that IGFBP2 expression increases from benign and dysplastic nevi to primary and metastatic melanomas and suggests that it may play a role in melanoma progression.[1]References
- Expression of insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 2 in melanocytic lesions. Wang, H., Shen, S.S., Wang, H., Diwan, A.H., Zhang, W., Fuller, G.N., Prieto, V.G. J. Cutan. Pathol. (2003) [Pubmed]
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