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. 2014:2014:262385.
doi: 10.1155/2014/262385. Epub 2014 Apr 17.

Serum SALL4 is a novel prognosis biomarker with tumor recurrence and poor survival of patients in hepatocellular carcinoma

Su-xia Han  1 , Jun-lan Wang  1 , Xi-jing Guo  1 , Chen-chen He  1 , Xia Ying  1 , Jin-lu Ma  1 , Yuan-yuan Zhang  1 , Qian Zhao  1 , Qing Zhu  1
Affiliations

Serum SALL4 is a novel prognosis biomarker with tumor recurrence and poor survival of patients in hepatocellular carcinoma

Su-xia Han et al. J Immunol Res. 2014.

Abstract

Aim: Sal-like protein 4 (SALL4), is reexpressed in tissues of a subgroup of HCC associated with poor prognosis. Reports of SALL4 serological levels linked to HCC patients are meager and unclear in the prognosis of this malignancy.

Methods: Immunohistochemistry and optical microscopy protocols were used to examine the presence of SALL4 in liver tissues from the following patients: 38 HCC, 11 chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV), 13 liver cirrhosis, and 12 healthy controls. Additionally, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to measure the SALL4 levels in serum samples isolated from patients as follows: 127 with HCC, 27 with HBV, 24 with liver cirrhosis, and 23 normal controls.

Results: Analysis of liver tissues sections from HCC patients (18 out 38; 47.4%) showed positive staining for SALL4 and its expression did no correlate with any of the clinicopathologic characteristics. HCC patients displayed higher levels (50.4%) of SALL4 protein in serum, compared with the three control groups. Moreover, SALL4 concentration reached the maximum level after one week after treatment and dropped quickly after one month. These HCC patients showing high SALL4 serum levels had poor prognosis, evidenced by both tumor recurrence and overall survival rate.

Conclusions: High SALL4 serum levels are a novel biomarker in the prognosis of HCC patients.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Representative images showing the presence of SALL4 protein in liver cancer and noncancerous tissue sections. (a) The positive expression of SALL4 in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues (the scoring is 2+); (b) the negative expression of SALL4 in liver tissues with chronic hepatitis B virus; (c) the negative expression of SALL4 in liver samples with liver cirrhosis; and (d) the negative expression of SALL4 in liver samples of health controls. (400x magnification).
Figure 2
Figure 2
(a) The serum SALL4 levels in HCC and three controls. The concentration of serum SALL4 in HCC was much higher than that in controls (P < 0.001). The three control groups had no significant differences. (b) The comparison of serum SALL4 levels (n = 52) before and after treatment. The level of serum SALL4 after treatment was higher than before treatment (P < 0.002).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Kaplan-Meier curves showed a lower rate of overall survival in HCC patients with high expression of serum SALL4 than with low expression of serum SALL4.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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