Chemoresistance is associated with Beclin-1 and PTEN expression in epithelial ovarian cancers

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to investigate the protein expression of the autophagy‑related genes, BECN1 and PTEN, and the association with drug resistance in epithelial ovarian cancers. In total, 40 patients with pathologically diagnosed epithelial ovarian cancer were divided into a chemotherapy‑sensitive group (n=20) and a chemotherapy‑resistant group (n=20), according to the results of the pre‑ or post‑operative normative chemotherapy and the ­post‑operative follow‑up. The protein expression of the phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) and the BECN1 gene product, Beclin‑1, was analyzed using immunohistochemistry in the 40 patients with ovarian carcinoma. The positive rate of Beclin‑1 expression was significantly lower in the resistant group (35.0%) compared with the sensitive group (50.0%). The positive rate of PTEN expression was also significantly lower in the resistant group (30.0%) compared with the sensitive group (65.0%). Furthermore, the differences in the expression rates were revealed to be significant (P<0.05). The expression of Beclin‑1 was identified to be positively correlated with the expression of PTEN (rs=0.816; P<0.0001). The low expression of the Beclin‑1 and PTEN proteins in the ovarian cancer tissues was revealed to be closely associated with drug resistance. Therefore, Beclin‑1 may interact with PTEN to participate in the mechanism of drug resistance and the changes in macrophage activity observed in cases of drug‑resistant ovarian cancer.