Abstract: Objective  To investigate the expression of Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase-1(PARP-1) and its relationship with vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) and microvessel density (MVD) in epithelial ovarian cancer tissues, and to further explore the effect of PARP-1 on the angiogenesis of ovarian cancer. Methods  Expressions of PARP-1, VEGF-A and MVD in 60 cases of epithelial ovarian cancer tissues and expression of PARP-1 in 30 cases of normal ovarian tissues were detected by immunohistochemical technology (SP). Ovarian cancer tissues were divided into PARP-1 positive group and PARP-1 negative group with reference to the assessment criteria of immunohistochemical staining.  SKOV3 cells were transfected with either negative control siRNA (NC-siRNA group) or PARP-1 siRNA (PARP1-siRNA group), and tube formation assay in vitro was used to determine the angiogenesis capacity. Expression of VEGF-A in supernatants of SKOV3 cells post transfection was tested by ELISA. Results  Positive rate of PARP-1 in ovarian cancer tissues (44/60, 73.3%) was significantly higher than that in the normal ovarian tissues (8/30, 26.7%) (P<0.05). In ovarian cancer, expression of PARP-1 was associated with tumor size, histological grade and lymphatic metastasis. Expression of PARP-1 was positively correlated with VEGF-A (P<0.05). MVD value was significantly higher in PARP-1 positive group than in the negative group (P<0.01). Tube density in NC-siRNA group (14.67±1.21) was higher than that in PARP1-siRNA group (8.83±1.47) (P<0.01). Expression of VEGF-A in NC-siRNA group and PARP1-siRNA group was significantly different (P<0.01). Conclusion  PARP-1 may promote the angiogenesis of ovarian cancer by up-regulating the expression of VEGF-A.

Key words: Angiogenesis, Ovarian cancer, Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase-1, siRNA, Vascular endothelial growth factor-A, Microvessel density