EXPRESSION OF HYPOXIA-INDUCIBLE FACTOR-1 ALPHA AND APOPTOSIS AND PROLIFERATION IN PANCREATIC CANCER

Objective To study the expression of hypoxia inducible factor-1 alpha (HIF-1α) and its relationship with proliferation and apoptosis in human pancreatic cancer. Methods The immunohistochemical PicTure TM method was used to detect the expressions of HIF-1, Bcl-2 and PCNA in 47 cases of pancreatic cancer and 10 cases of normal pancreas tissues, respectively. Results In 47 cases of pancreatic cancer, the positive rate of HIF-1α was 55.3%, but zero in the 10 cases of normal pancreatic tissues. Significant difference existed between HIF-1α expression and infiltration and metastasis in pancreatic cancer (χ 2=4.32,6.01, P0.05,0.01). The positive rate of HIF-1α had no relation with the size, differentiation and 1-year survival rate of the patients ( χ 2= 2.07- 2.52, P0.05). The extent of proliferation of pancreatic carcinomas was closely correlated with metastasis and 1-year survival rate (χ 2=5.98, 6.19, P0.05), but not with the size, histological grade and invasion (χ 2=2.01-3.74, P 0.05 ). The positive rate of Bcl-2 was 29.8% and 100% in 47 cases of the carcinomas and 10 cases of normal pancreatic tissue, respectively, and it was not related with the clinical pathological features of the cancer (χ 2=0.65-2.11, P0.05). The expression of HIF-1α was positively associated with the PCNA level (r=0.586, χ 2=15.15, P0.01), but not with the expression of Bcl-2 ( r= -0.211 , χ 2=2.094, P0.05) in pancreatic cancer. Conclusion Over-expression of HIF-1α is significantly associated with the proliferation, invasion and metastasis, but not with the apoptosis of pancreatic cancer. The expression level of PCNA is an important index for judging the metastasis and prognosis of the disease.