Markers of the basal cell layer of prostate are effective indicators of its malignant transformation

Abstract

Development of local or generalized forms of prostate cancer (PC) depends on metastasis formation which biological nature is based on the epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT). ЕМТ presents a highly conservative reversible program maintained by specific transcription factors suppressing E-cadherin expression and supporting production of mesenchymal polarity factors. The goal of this work was to study functionally distinct markers in malignant prostate tissue of patients with prostate cancer using histological evaluation, reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction and immunoblotting. Our results showed that most evident alterations in the prostate tissue of patients with prostate cancer were related to the basal-cell layer. Expression of Е-cadherin and СК5 markers decreased, while AMACR expression increased. These results support the idea that the primary targets of tumor transformation are basal cells. During cancer progression, these cells acquire a luminal phenotype. Functional analysis of these changes may be performed in the future using isolated prostate cancer stem cells.