Objectives: The hepatocyte growth factor(HGF)/c-Met pathway may play various roles in the carcinogenesis of various organs. Although HGF/c-Met signalling pathway has been shown to demonstrate various cellular responses including mitogenic, proliferative, morphogenic and angiogenic activities, the study on their expression related to clinicopathological parameters in thyroid tumor is relatively rare. So we want to find out the clinical significance of the c-Met in thyroid tumor.
Materials and Methods: We assess the mRNA and protein expression of the c-Met genes by means of RT-PCR method and the immunohistochemical stain in 100 cases of thyroid tumors(50 papillary carcinomas, 10 follicular carcinomas, 20 follicular adenomas, 20 nodular hyperplasia).
Results: By RT-PCR, c-Met mRNA was detected in 43(86%) in papillary carcinoma, 4(40%) in follicular carcinoma, 4(20%) in follicular adenoma and 2(10%) in nodular hyperplasia cases. By immunohistochemistry, c-Met protein expression was detected in 44(88%), 2(20%), 3(15%) and 1(5%). Expression of the c-Met mRNA and protein expression was significantly highly recognized in papillary carcinoma. The c-Met protein overexpression was significantly correlated with the grade of the differentiation.
Conclusion: These results suggest that c-Met expression may be associated with thyroid papillary cancer progression. The differential expression of c-Met protein and mRNA suggests that these molecules may be a reliable diagnostic marker in thyroid papillary cancer.
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