Abstract:

Objective     To investigate expressions of EZH2 and CTGF  gene in lung adenocarcinoma and their significance. Methods    Sixty fresh specimens of lung adenocarcinoma, paired with adjacent normal lung tissue,  were harvested from 60 patients treated in the Department of Thoracic Surgery in Qilu Hospital. Polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry were used to assay expressions of CTGF and EZH2 in the specimens. Clinicopathological parameters were collected and the correlations with CTGF and EZH2 were subsequently analyzed. Results     Expression of EZH2 in lung adenocarcinoma was increased and correlated with histological differentiation, pTNM staging, and smoking, but not with gender or age. Also, expression of CTGF in lung adenocarcinoma was decreased and correlated with histological differentiation and pTNM stage and smoking,but not with gender or age. ConclusionExpression of EZH2 in lung adenocarcinoma was significantly up-regulated. It is likely to participate in the development of lung adenocarcinoma as an oncogene. Expression of CTGF in lung adenocarcinoma was significantly de-regulated. CTGF is likely to participate in the development of lung adenocarcinoma as a cancer suppressor gene.

Key words: Lung adenocarcinoma; Enhancer of zeste homolog 2; Connective tissue growth factor; Polymerase chain reaction; Immunohistochemistry