E-cadherin and alpha-catenin expression during tumor progression of cervical carcinoma

Objective. The objective of this study was to determine whether a relations hip between the E-caherin molecule and the E-cadherin-associated cytoplasmi c molecule, alpha -catenin, could provide additional information in the neo plastic progression of cervical cancer. Methods. In this study we investigated by immunohistochemistry E-cadherin ( E-cad) and alpha -catenin (alpha -cat) expression in 57 cervical biopsy sam ples representative of normal exocervical epithelium, viral (human papillom avirus (HPV) infection) and dysplastic lesions (low- and high-grade lesions ), and invasive squamous cell carcinoma. The presence of immunostaining and the pattern of distribution of these molecules were correlated with the hi stological diagnosis (normal cervical epithelium vs HPV, cervical intraepit helial neoplasia (CIN), and invasive carcinoma). Results. The correlation between alpha -cat expression and the histological diagnosis was statistically significant (chi (2) test, P < 0.0077); moreov er, E-cad and <alpha>-cat distributions were significantly correlated with the histological classification (P < 0.0001 and P < 0.0043, respectively). Conclusion. These results suggest that not only E-cad but also alpha -cat a re associated with the loss of differentiation in CIN and squamous cell car cinomas; thus the coexpression of E-cad and alpha -cat may represent a disc riminant of malignant potential and could provide an additional criterion t o define high-grade CIN. (C) 2001 Academic Press.