Immunohistochemical Analysis of Gamma Catenin in Wilms' Tumors

Abstract

The aim of our study was to investigate the expression of gamma-catenin in normal kidney and in Wilms' tumor by immunohistochemistry and to correlate the results with tumor stage, histological type, and prognostic group. We investigated 28 cases of Wilms' tumor, 2 Wilms' tumor metastases in lungs, and 1 specimen of normal renal tissue. Expression of gamma-catenin was detected in 14 cases. There was a weak inverse relationship between gamma-catenin expression and tumor stage. Expression of gamma-catenin was detected in various histologic types of Wilms' tumor, but there was no statistically significant correlation, except in cases with diffuse anaplasia that were negative. In 2 metastatic cases and in the case of bilateral Wilms' tumor gamma-catenin immunostaining was not observed Our findings suggest an absence of strong correlation between the loss of gamma-catenin and unfavorable outcome.

Plakoglobin: Role in Tumorigenesis and Metastasis

“…In renal carcinomas, decreased plakoglobin levels have been associated with metastasis, and patients with tumors expressing plakoglobin showed significantly higher survival rates than those that did not [117]. Aberrant or decreased plakoglobin levels have also been reported in Wilms' tumors and soft tissue sarcomas, where the decrease in plakoglobin was associated with increased risk of pulmonary metastasis [118, 119]. In endometrial tumors, the aberrant expression of plakoglobin was correlated with myometrial invasion [120], whereas medulloblastoma tumors expressing plakoglobin were nonmetastatic, with no evidence of subarachnoid or hematogenous metastasis [121].…”