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. 2024 Jul 8;14(13):1454.
doi: 10.3390/diagnostics14131454.

Diagnostic Value of SALL4 and OCT3/4 in Pediatric Testicular Tumors

Ovidiu Bîcă  1 , Carmen Iulia Ciongradi  1 , Marius Ivănuță  2 , Victor Ianole  3 , Ioan Sârbu  1 , Elena Cojocaru  3 , Delia Elena Bîcă  4 , Ludmila Lozneanu  5
Affiliations

Diagnostic Value of SALL4 and OCT3/4 in Pediatric Testicular Tumors

Ovidiu Bîcă et al. Diagnostics (Basel). .

Abstract

Testicular tumors (TTs) are rare in children, posing diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. This retrospective study evaluates the diagnostic and prognostic utility of SALL4 and OCT3/4 in pediatric TTs. We analyzed 18 cases of different types of TTs using immunohistochemistry (IHC) to assess SALL4 (Spalt-like transcription factor 4) and OCT3/4 (Octamer binding transcription factor 3/4) expression. SALL4 was positive in 83.3% of tumors, while OCT3/4 was positive in 38.9% of tumors, with a significantly higher prevalence in patients aged 12-18 years compared to those aged 0-11 years (p = 0.013). Mixed germinal cell tumors were significantly more frequently associated with OCT3/4 (p = 0.003), and a high immunostaining expression for SALL4 was observed primarily in yolk sac tumors and embryonal carcinoma. Our findings suggest that SALL4 and OCT3/4 immunostaining can aid in accurate diagnosis and treatment planning, and underscores the importance of OCT3/4 as a predictive factor in pediatric testicular tumors, highlighting its substantial correlation with tumor type and its impact on treatment response. These markers may guide personalized therapeutic strategies, potentially improving patient outcomes.

Keywords: OCT3/4; SALL4; immunohistochemistry; pediatric; testicular; tumors.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(a–c). Germinal tumor—hematoxylin–-eosin (HE) and OCT3/4, SALL4 immunostaining expression in tumor cells. (a) Germinal tumor—malignant structures with mature and immature nervous structures, cytonuclear atypia, atypical mitoses (×5). (b) OCT3/4—moderate positive nuclear expression in tumor cells (×10). (c) SALL4—diffuse positive nuclear expression in tumor cells (×10).
Figure 2
Figure 2
(a–c). Mixed germinal tumor—HE and OCT3/4/SALL4 immunostaining expression in tumor cells. (a) Mixed GCT with YST features, small areas with the appearance of a seminoma, necrosis, and hemorrhage (×5). (b) Tumor cells diffusely positive for OCT 3/4 (×10). (c) Cell tumor diffusely positive for SALL4 (×10).
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