Research on expression of osteopontin in human gliomas

Objective To investigate the expression of osteopontin(OPN) in human gliomas and the relationship between them.Methods OPN expression in human normal brain cells and glioma cells was detected by immunohistochemical staining, semi-quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot method.Results OPN, which was not expressed in normal human brain cells, presented in glioma cell membrane, cytoplasm and blood vessel endothelium. In human brain glioma, mean optical density value for osteopontin increased accordingly with the advancing pathological grades. Significant difference was seen in optical density value between low grade (grade I or II) and high grade (grade III or IV) (P0.05). Conclusion The expression of osteopontin is closely related to the malignant degree of glioma.