Altered expression of transforming growth factor-α: An early event in renal cell carcinoma development
✍ Scribed by Jeffrey I. Everitt; Cheryl L. Walker; Thomas W. Goldsworthy; Douglas C. Wolf
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1997
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 270 KB
- Volume
- 19
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0899-1987
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✦ Synopsis
Transforming growth factor-α (TGF-α) is a multifunctional cell regulatory protein with a wide range of effects on cell growth and differentiation and has been implicated in the neoplastic transformation of a variety of cell types. Altered expression of TGF-α and its cognate receptor (epidermal growth factor receptor) is enhanced in human and rat renal cell carcinomas. The objective of the study reported here was to determine whether altered TGF-α expression is an early or late event in renal tubular oncogenesis. The immunohistochemical expression of TGF-α was studied in preneoplastic renal tubular lesions in a rat model of hereditary renal cell carcinoma. Strong TGF-α immunoreactivity was present at all stages of renal cell tumor development, including the earliest detectable dysplasias. In contrast, the non-neoplastic regenerating tubular epithelium of rat degenerative nephropathy did not stain for TGF-α, although this tissue exhibited a proliferative capacity similar to that observed in the dysplastic and neoplastic lesions. This study indicated that altered TGF-α expression was detectable early in the development of renal cell tumors and may be an important feature of the transformed phenotype.