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. 2012 Aug;46(4):331-40.
doi: 10.4132/KoreanJPathol.2012.46.4.331. Epub 2012 Aug 23.

Expressions of E-cadherin, Cortactin and MMP-9 in Pseudoepitheliomatous Hyperplasia and Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck: Their Relationships with Clinicopathologic Factors and Prognostic Implication

Tack Kune You  1 , Kyoung Min Kim, Sang Jae Noh, Jun Sang Bae, Kyu Yun Jang, Myoung Ja Chung, Woo Sung Moon, Myoung Jae Kang, Dong Geun Lee, Ho Sung Park
Affiliations

Expressions of E-cadherin, Cortactin and MMP-9 in Pseudoepitheliomatous Hyperplasia and Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck: Their Relationships with Clinicopathologic Factors and Prognostic Implication

Tack Kune You et al. Korean J Pathol. 2012 Aug.

Abstract

Background: E-cadherin, cortactin, and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9 have roles in tumor development or progression, but their expression has not been fully investigated in pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia (PEH) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the head and neck.

Methods: We evaluated the immunohistochemical expression of E-cadherin, cortactin, and MMP-9 in 29 cases of PEH and 97 cases of SCC. Additionally, we evaluated their relationship with clinicopathologic factors and prognostic implications in SCC.

Results: Thirty-five cases of SCC showed reduced expression of E-cadherin, whereas none of the PEH did. A total of 20 cases and 11 cases of SCC were immunoreactive for cortactin and MMP-9, respectively, whereas none of the PEH did. In SCC, reduced expression of E-cadherin was correlated with cortactin expression and invasion depth. Cortactin expression was correlated with differentiation, T classification, and recurrence and/or metastasis. MMP-9 expression was correlated with invasion depth. Cortactin expression was correlated with poor overall survival and relapse-free survival and it was an independent prognostic factor.

Conclusions: The reduced expression of E-cadherin and the expression of cortactin may be helpful for the differential diagnosis of PEH and SCC. Furthermore, cortactin expression in association with reduced E-cadherin expression is correlated with poor prognosis in SCC.

Keywords: Cadherins; Carcinoma, squamous cell; Cortactin; Head and neck neoplasms; Matrix metalloproteinase 9; Pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia.

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Conflict of interest statement

No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Histologic findings and immunohistochemical staining for E-cadherin, cortactin, and matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) in pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia (PEH) (A, C, E, G) and in squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) (B, D, F, H). PEH shows thin, elongated, reactive epithelial proliferation with intense subepithelial inflammation (A). SCC shows atypical squamous cells with a loss of polarity in the superficial portion (B). Expression of E-cadherin is preserved in PEH (C) but is reduced in SCC (D). PEH is negative for cortactin (E) and MMP-9 (G), whereas SCC shows cytoplasmic expression of cortactin (F) and MMP-9 (H). H&E, hematoxylin and eosin.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Kaplan-Meier survival analysis of squamous cell carcinoma in the head and neck region. Overall survival in groups according to perineural invasion (A), stage (B), and cortactin expression (C). Relapse-free survival in groups according to perineural invasion (D), stage (E), and cortactin expression (F). p-values are determined by comparing survival distributions using the log rank test.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Kaplan-Meier survival analysis of 94 cases of squamous cell carcinoma grouped by combined expression patterns of E-cadherin and cortactin. Overall survival (A) and relapse-free survival (B) in three groups: E-cadherin-preserved/cortactin-negative group [E-cad (+)/Cort (-)], E-cadherin-reduced/cortactin-negative group [E-cad (-)/Cort (-)], and E-cadherin-reduced/cortactin-positive group [E-cad (-)/Cort (+)]. p-values are determined by comparing survival distributions using the log rank test.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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