RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a multistage process resulting from various genetic changes. We aimed to determine nuclear phosphoprotein c-Myc and cellular phosphoprotein p53 expression and to evaluate their importance in HCC diagnosis. METHODS: One hundred and twenty chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients (60 non-HCC CHC patients and 60 HCC patients who had a single small (<5 cm) tumour) were recruited. The gene products of c-Myc and p53 were identified in liver tissues and serum samples using immunostaining, western blot and ELISA. RESULTS: Immunohistochemical detection of c-Myc and p53 with monospecific antibodies revealed intense and diffuse cytoplasmic staining patterns. Accumulated mutant proteins, released from tumour cells into the extracellular serum, were detected at 62 KDa, for c-Myc, and 53 KDa, for p53, using western blotting. In contrast to alpha feto-protein, there was a significant increase (p < 0.0001) in the positivity rate of c-Myc (86.7% vs. 6.7%) and p53 (78.3% vs. 8.3%) in the malignant vs. non-malignant patients. The parallel combination of c-Myc and p53 reach the absolute sensitivity (100%), for more accurate and reliable HCC detection (specificity was 87%). CONCLUSION: c-Myc and p53 are potential HCC diagnostic biomarkers, and convenient combinations of them could improve diagnostic accuracy of HCC.
Asunto(s)
Carcinoma Hepatocelular/metabolismo , Núcleo Celular/metabolismo , Hepatitis C Crónica/metabolismo , Neoplasias Hepáticas/metabolismo , Fosfoproteínas/metabolismo , Proteínas Proto-Oncogénicas c-myc/metabolismo , Proteína p53 Supresora de Tumor/metabolismo , Adulto , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Factores de Riesgo , Sensibilidad y EspecificidadRESUMEN
Hepatitis C virus (HCV)-RNA amplification is a costly procedure in terms of time and reagents. Consequently, the search for more a cost-effective specific HCV diagnostic method is of great interest. Capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) methods that detect HCV in serum, plasma, whole blood, and ascites without the need for sample pretreatment are not currently available. Here, a CZE method was developed that detects a larger specific peak in serum and other body fluids of HCV-infected patients than that found in healthy or hepatitis B virus (HBV)-infected individuals. The nature of the HCV peak was investigated using biochemical treatments, including RNase, DNase, and chymotrypsin enzymes. Electroeluted HCV peak was applied to transmission electron microscopy; electron micrographs showed that the HCV peak was attributed to virus-like particles with diameter and morphological properties similar to non-enveloped HCV nucleocapsids. The determination of CZE-HCV and HCV-RNA levels using quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) in 258 subjects revealed that these two tests were highly correlated (r = 0.92, p < 0.0001). One important issue of HCV testing is the storage conditions of serum to obtain reliable results. Serum samples at -20 °C showed the best preservation of the HCV peak up to one year. In conclusion, we detected HCV using CZE in a microliters volume from different body fluids. Besides the stability of samples in maintaining their peak height, the HCV-CZE test is rapid (<15 min) and a well-suited and low-cost technique. Thus, a major improvement in the quantitative diagnosis of HCV infection was established.