E-Cadherin gene expression in oral cancer: clinical and prospective data

Resumen

Abstract BACKGROUND: Low protein expression of E-cadherin in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) has been associated with clinical and histopathological traits such as metastases, recurrence, low survival and poor tumor differentiation, and it is considered a high-risk marker of malignancy. However, it is still unknown whether low expression of E-cadherin is also present at the mRNA level in OSCC cases. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to compare E-cadherin mRNA expression in OSCC patients and controls and to correlate the expression with clinical and prospective characteristics. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Forty patients and 40 controls were enrolled. E-cadherin mRNA expression was evaluated by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction using TaqMan probes. RESULTS: E-cadherin mRNA expression was significantly decreased in OSCC patients compared to that of controls (p