Expression of PI3K, PTEN and Akt in small intestinal adenocarcinoma detected by quantum dots-based immunofluorescence technology

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Zhang, Yi^{a; 1} | Yao, Xue^{a; 1} | Jiang, Congqing^b | Yue, Junqiu^c | Guan, Jing^d | Cheng, Honglei^a | Hajirashid, Mohammed^a | Wang, Yan^a | Fan, Lifang^{a; *}

Affiliations: [a] Department of Pathology, School of Basic Medical Science, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China | [b] Department of General Surgery, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China | [c] Department of Pathology, Hubei Cancer Hospital, Wuhan, Hubei, China | [d] Department of Pathology, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author: Lifang Fan, Department of Pathology, School of Basic Medical Science, Wuhan University, 185 Donghu Road, Wuchang District, 430071 Wuhan, Hubei, China. E-mail: lifangfan@whu.edu.cn.

Note: [1] These authors contributed equally to this study.

Abstract: Background:Small intestinal adenocarcinoma (SIA) is often diagnosed at an advanced stage due to its rarity and nonspecific clinical manifestations. Abnormal activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway may lead to various diseases including cancer. In this study, we explored the relationship between those pathways and SIA. Objective:To investigate the expression of PI3K, phospho-Akt (p-Akt) and PTEN in SIA to evaluate their clinical significance. Methods:Expression of PI3K, p-Akt and PTEN biomarkers were examined by quantum dots-based immunofluorescence histochemistry (QDs-IHC) and traditional immunohistochemistry (IHC). There are 53 SIA samples, 11 non-cancer tissue samples and 11 normal small intestine tissues. Results:The positive frequencies of PI3K and p-Akt expression were significantly higher in the SIA group (77.4%, 41/53 and 77.4%, 41/53, respectively) than that in the non-cancer group (36.4%, 4/11 and 27.3, 3/11, respectively) and normal small intestine tissue group (36.4%, 4/11 and 18.2, 2/11, respectively). However, the difference of the positive rates of PTEN expression in three groups did not reach a statistical difference (P=0.761). The IHC results were in concordance with the QDs-IHC. Conclusions:These observations support that PI3K/Akt pathway is highly activated in SIA, which may implicate therapeutic targeting of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway for its treatment.

Keywords: Adenocarcinoma, PI3K, PTEN, p-Akt, quantum dots, small intestine

DOI: 10.3233/CBM-130352

Journal: Cancer Biomarkers, vol. 13, no. 4, pp. 299-305, 2013