Activation of nuclear factor-kB (NF-kB) signaling was observed in pancreatic adenocarcinoma cell lines and tumours. However, information on the expression of RelA/p65, the major transcription activating NF-kB subunit, in these carcinomas and possible correlations thereof with NF-kB activation and patient survival is not available. To provide this missing translational link, we analysed expression of RelA/p65 in 82 pancreatic adenocarcinomas by immunohistochemistry. Moreover, we measured activation of the NF-kB pathway in 11 tumours by quantitative PCR for NF-kB target genes. We observed strong cytoplasmic or nuclear expression of RelA/p65 in 42 and 37 carcinomas, respectively. High cytoplasmic and nuclear expression of RelA/p65 had negative prognostic impact with 2-year survival rates for patients without cytoplasmic or nuclear RelA/p65 positivity of 41 and 40% and rates for patients with strong cytoplasmic or nuclear RelA/p65 expression of 22 and 20%, respectively. High RelA/p65 expression was correlated to increased expression of NF-kB target genes. The observation that high expression of RelA/p65 is correlated to an activation of the NF-kB pathway and indicates poor patient survival identifies a patient subgroup that might particularly benefit from NF-kB-inhibiting agents in the treatment of pancreatic cancer. Based on our findings, this subgroup could be identified by applying simple immunohistochemical techniques.

No abstract

No abstract

Purpose: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) is a ligand-activated transcription factor that has been implicated in carcinogenesis and progression of various solid tumors, including pancreatic carcinoma. We aimed to clarify the expression patterns of PPARγ in pancreatic ductal carcinomas and to correlate these to clinicopathologic variables, including patient survival. Experimental Design: Array-based expression profiling of 19 microdissected carcinomas and 14 normal ductal epithelia was conducted. Additionally, Western blots of pancreatic cancer cell lines and paraffinized tissue of 129 pancreatic carcinomas were immunostained for PPARγ. For statistical analysis, Fisher's exact test, χ2 test for trends, correlation analysis, Kaplan-Meier analysis, and Cox's regression were applied. Results: Expression profiles showed a strong overexpression of PPARγ mRNA (change fold, 6.9; P = 0.04). Immunohistochemically, PPARγ expression was seen in 71.3% of pancreatic cancer cases. PPARγ expression correlated positively to higher pT stages and higher tumor grade. Survival analysis showed a significant prognostic value for PPARγ, which was found to be independent in the clinically important subgroup of node-negative tumors. Conclusions: PPARγ is commonly up-regulated in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and might be a prognostic marker in this disease. Both findings corroborate the importance of PPARγ in tumor progression of pancreatic cancer.

No abstract