Motility related protein 1 (MRP1/CD9) expression in colon cancer.

Abstract

It is important to detect genes that may be good prognostic markers for colon cancer patients. With this in mind, we identified the motility related protein-1 (MRP1/CD9) gene in human colon tissues. The aim of this study was to clarify the significance of MRP1/CD9 gene expression in human colon cancers. We performed the differential mRNA display technique between tumor/normal paired samples of the colon and identified MRP1/CD9. Eighty-two surgical specimens of primary colorectal cancer were analyzed by means of reverse transcription-PCR for the MRP1/CD9 gene. Its expression status and clinicopathological variables were analyzed univariately and multivariately. The MRP1/ CD9 mRNA expression was positive in 56 cases and negative in 26 cases. The MRP1/CD9 negative cases showed a significantly higher frequency of venous-vessel invasion and liver metastasis, or a worse prognosis than the MRP1/CD9 positive cases (P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis with the Cox regression model disclosed that MRP1/CD9 expression was an independent prognostic factor distinct from the lymph node status. The findings imply that the study of MRP1/CD9 expression may be useful for predicting prognosis of patients with colorectal cancer.