Aberrant Hedgehog Signaling and Clinical Outcome in Osteosarcoma

[摘要] Despite the importance of Hedgehog signaling in bone development, the relationship between Hedgehog pathway expression and osteosarcoma clinical characteristics and outcome has not been investigated. In this study of 43 high-grade human osteosarcoma samples, we detected high expression levels of the Hedgehog ligand gene,IHH, and target genes,PTCH1andGLI1, in most samples. Further analysis in tumors of patients with localized disease at diagnosis identified coexpression ofIHHandPTCH1exclusively in large tumors. Higher levels ofIHHwere observed more frequently in males and patients with higher levels ofGLI1were more responsive to chemotherapy. Subgroup analysis by tumor size andIHHexpression indicated that the well-known association between survival and tumor size was further refined whenIHHlevels were taken into consideration.

[学科分类] 肿瘤学