Glypican-3 expression and its relationship with recurrence of HCC after liver transplantation

摘要

AIM:To investigate the diagnostic value of glypican-3(GPC3) and its relationship with hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) recurrence after liver transplantation.METHODS:HCC tissue samples(n = 31) obtained from patients who had undergone liver transplantation were analyzed.GPC3 mRNA and protein expression were analyzed by TaqMan real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry.Correlation between the GPC3 expression and clinicopathological features was analyzed.The potential prognostic value of GPC3 was investigated by comparing recurrence-free survival between HCC patients with and without GPC3 expression.RESULTS:Using a cutoff value of 3.5 × 10-2,20 of 31 cancerous tissues had expression values of > 3.5 × 10-2,whereas 3 of 31 adjacent non-neoplastic parenchyma and 0 of 20 control liver tissues had expression values of > 3.5 × 10-2(P 3.5 × 10-2) and those without vascular invasion(P < 0.05 for both).CONCLUSION:GPC3 expression may serve as a valuable diagnostic marker for HCC.GPC3 mRNA overexpression may be an adverse indicator for HCC patients after liver transplantation.