Expression and Clinical Significance of CD90 and CD44 in Human Hepatocarcinoma Tissues

Objective:To study the expression of CD90 and CD44 in human hepatocelluar carcinoma(HCC) tissues,and to explore the relationship between their expression and recurrence of HCC.Methods: We collected tissue samples of 20 HCC patients,who had been followed up for more than one year,including 10 cases with recurrence and 10 cases without recurrence.Specimens were embedded in paraffin,and then 3 pieces were cut from each specimen in the thickness of 1μm.The first piece was routinely HE stained for pathological diagnosis.The other two consecutive pieces were used to detect CD90 and CD44 by immunohistochemistry.The expression of CD90 and CD44 in recurrence group and recurrence-free group was compared.Results: The expression of CD90 and CD44 in human HCC tissues was from 0.13% to 4.10%.The expression of CD90 and CD44 had a relationship with HCC recurrence and prognosis.The expression of CD90 in the recurrent group was significantly higher than that in the recurrent-free group.Most of CD90 or CD44 positive cells were closed to vessels in recurrence group.Conclusions: Liver cancer stem cells exist in HCC tumor tissues with significant heterogeneity,and they express a variety of cancer stem cell markers such as CD90 and CD44.The expression of liver cancer stem cell markers is correlated with recurrence of HCC.