Expression of Wnt5a and .BETA.-Catenin in Chinese Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Tongue

Wnt family regulates cell growth, differentiation and proliferation during embryonic development and also plays important roles in tumorigenesis. By the method of immunohistochemistry, a paralleled stydy was conducted to check Wnt5a and β-Catenin expression in OSCC formalin fixed-paraffin embedded tissues. The results demonstrated (1) Wnt5a and β-Catenin cytoplasmic expression appeared in most OSCC. (2) Statistical results showed positive correlation between the level of Wnt5a expression and OSCC differentiation (P<0.05) and inverse correlation between the level of β-Catenin cytoplasmic expression and OSCC differentiation (P<0.05). Cytoplasmic accumulation of β-Catenin protein also associated with lymph node metastasis (P<0.05), and loss of β-Catenin protein on cell membrane was correlative differentiation level of OSCC inversely (P<0.05). These data indicate Wnt/β-Catenin pathway associates with tumorigenesis, metastasis and prognosis of OSCC, and Wnt5a also associates with histological grade of OSCC.