[Expression and significance of PCNA and p27 in benign prostate hypertrophy and prostate carcinoma].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expression of PCNA and p27 in human benign prostate hypertrophy (BPH) and prostate carcinoma (PCa) and their effect on the genesis and progression of the tumor. METHODS: The paraffin-embedded sections of 30 cases with BPH and 37 cases with PCa were collected. The expression of p27 and PCNA protein were examined by S-P immunohistochemical method. Comparative analysis for BPH and pathological grade and clinical stage of PCa was performed. RESULTS: The expression of PCNA in BPH (3.3%) was significantly lower than that in Pca (83.8%, P < 0.01). The expression of p27 in BPH (70.0%) was significantly higher than that in Pca (27.0%, P < 0.05). The expression of p27 was not correlated with histological grade and clinical stage in Pca (P > 0.05). An inverse correlation was found between p27 and PCNA expression in BPH (P < 0.01), while no correlation was found in Pca (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The loss or decreased expression of p27 protein may be related to the genesis of benign prostate hypertrophy, but not to the development of prostate carcinoma; the overexpression of PCNA may play an important role in the malignant behavior and progression of prostate carcinoma.