Expression and distribution characteristics of human orthology of mammalian enabled in glioma

Objective To observe the expression and distribution characteristics of human orthology of mammalian enabled (hMena) in human glioma, and analyze the correlation of its expression with the pathological grade of the glioma. Methods Sixty-five specimens of glioma with different pathological grades were collected; among these samples, according to the WHO classification, grade Ⅰ was noted in 9, grade Ⅱ in 16, grade Ⅲ in 19 and grade Ⅳ in 21; in 6 of these patients with grade Ⅳ glioblastoma multiforme, tissues from the lesion, the junctional zone between the glioma and the normal brain tissue, and the surrounding area (with a diameter of 1.5 cm) were separated under the assistance of neuronavigation system. Another 5 normal brain tissues from patients with cerebral hemorrhage performed decompression were chosen as controls. Immunohistochemistry and Western blotting were used to detect the expression and distribution characteristics of hMena. Results The hMena expression was negative in control brain tissue, and its positive rates of gliomas with different grades were 11.11% (1/9), 25% (4/16), 84.21% (16/19) and 90.48% (19/21) in gliomas of grade Ⅰ, grade Ⅱ, grade Ⅲ and grade Ⅳ, respectively; and these staining was mainly located in cytoplasm; the hMena expression in gliomas with different grades was significantly different (x2=34.935, P=0.000). The expression rate of hMena was positively correlated with the increasing grade of WHO classification (rs=0.682, P=0.000).Western blotting indicated that, in gliomas with different pathological grades, hMena expression levels increased gradually with the increase of pathological grade. Conclusion The hMena protein might play a role in the malignant progression of glioma. Key words: Glioma;  hMena;  Immunohistochemistry