| Autor: |
Tologkos S; Laboratory of Histology-Embryology, Medical School, Democritus University of Thrace, 68100 Alexandroupolis, Greece., Papadatou V; Laboratory of Histology-Embryology, Medical School, Democritus University of Thrace, 68100 Alexandroupolis, Greece., Mitrakas AG; Laboratory of Histology-Embryology, Medical School, Democritus University of Thrace, 68100 Alexandroupolis, Greece., Pagonopoulou O; Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Medical School, Democritus University of Thrace, 68132 Alexandroupolis, Greece., Tripsianis G; Laboratory of Medical Statistics, Medical School, Democritus University of Thrace, 68132 Alexandroupolis, Greece., Alexiadis T; Laboratory of Histology-Embryology, Medical School, Democritus University of Thrace, 68100 Alexandroupolis, Greece., Alexiadi CA; Laboratory of Histology-Embryology, Medical School, Democritus University of Thrace, 68100 Alexandroupolis, Greece., Panagiotopoulos AP; Laboratory of Histology-Embryology, Medical School, Democritus University of Thrace, 68100 Alexandroupolis, Greece., Nikolaidou C; Laboratory of Pathology, Ippokrateio General Hospital of Thessaloniki, 54642 Thessaloniki, Greece., Lambropoulou M; Laboratory of Histology-Embryology, Medical School, Democritus University of Thrace, 68100 Alexandroupolis, Greece. |
| Abstrakt: |
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one the most common primary malignancies with high mortality and morbidity. The melanoma-associated antigen (MAGE) gene family includes several genes that are highly expressed in numerous human cancers, making many of them part of the cancer-testis antigen (CTA) family. MAGE-C1 is expressed in various malignancies but is absent in normal cells, except for the male germ line. Its presence is associated with a worse prognosis, increased tumor aggressiveness, and lymph node invasion. Similarly, MAGE-C2 is linked to the development of various malignant tumors. Despite these associations, the roles and mechanisms of MAGE-C1/MAGE-C2 in HCC remain unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the expression of MAGE-C1 and MAGE-C2 in HCC and correlate it with clinicohistological characteristics. Our findings indicated that MAGE-C1 expression is associated with a higher number of nodules, elevated AFP levels, HBV or HCV positivity, older age, male sex, and lymph node invasion. MAGE-C2 expression was correlated with these characteristics and the presence of cirrhosis. These results align with the limited literature, which suggests a correlation between MAGE expression and older age and HBV infection. Consequently, our study suggests that MAGE-C1 and MAGE-C2 are promising novel biomarkers for prognosis and potential therapeutic targets in HCC. |
