Z Gastroenterol 2008; 46 - A118
DOI: 10.1055/s-2008-1079722

Determination of proliferative/apoptotic ratio in human colon carcinoma and precursor lesions by multiple fluorescent labeling using virtual microscope

G Valcz 1, F Sipos 1, T Krenács 3, B Galamb 1, B Molnár 2, Z Tulassay 2
  • 12nd Department of Medicine, Semmelweis University, Budapest
  • 2Hungarian Academy of Science, Molecular Medicine Research Group, Budapest
  • 31st Department of Pathology and Experimental Cancer Research, Semmelweis University, Budapest

Background: The imbalance of epithelial apoptosis and proliferation may lead to the development of colon carcinomas. The determination of the proliferative/apoptotic ratio could characterize the different stages of the adenoma-dysplasia-carcinoma sequence (ADCS), which may be useful in the development of automated diagnostics of large number of precancerous lesions by virtual microscope.

Aims: The characterization of epithelial proliferative/apoptotic ratio of every stage of the adenoma-dysplasia-carcinoma sequence by multiple fluorescent labeling using digital microscopy.

Methods: Tissue MicroArrays (TMA) containing core samples from adenomas with low grade dysplasia (5), adenomas with high grade dysplasia (5), colon adenocarcinomas (5) and healthy colon (5) were done. Apoptosis was fluorescently detected by the TUNEL method, proliferative cells were fluorescently immunolabelled for the Ki-67 antigen. Labeling indices were determined on digital slides and linked to patient data using Mirax TMA Module software. Results were analysed by one-way ANOVA.

Results: Although increasing Ki-67 expression and decreasing TUNEL labeling index was found in parallel to the ADCS, the proliferative/apoptotic ratio showed significantly higher elevation in dysplasia and carcinoma than in the adenoma and healthy colon samples (p=0,002).

Conclusions: The determination of the proliferative/apoptotic ratio may be useful in the development of virtual microscopy based automated diagnostic algorythms of the ADCS.