Open AccessDifferent Angiogenic Potential in Low and High Grade Sporadic Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma Is Not Related to Alterations in the von Hippel–Lindau Gene
Author(s) -
Marcella Baldewijns,
Iris J.H. van Vlodrop,
Kim M. Smits,
Peter Vermeulen,
Gert G. Van den Eynden,
Fiona Schot,
Tania Roskams,
Hein Van Poppel,
Ma van Engeland,
Adriaan P. de Bruïne
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
analytical cellular pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.576
H-Index - 24
eISSN - 2210-7185
pISSN - 2210-7177
DOI - 10.1155/2009/704212
Subject(s) - angiogenesis , dna methylation , cancer research , biology , hypoxia inducible factors , clear cell renal cell carcinoma , epigenetics , methylation , hif1a , clear cell , renal cell carcinoma , immunohistochemistry , pathology , gene , medicine , gene expression , immunology , genetics
Background : von Hippel–Lindau ( VHL ) inactivation is common in sporadic clear cell renal cell carcinomas (ccRCC). pVHL is part of the ubiquitin ligase complex that targets the alpha subunits of hypoxia-inducible transcription factor (HIF) for degradation under well-oxygenated conditions. In the absence of wild-type pVHL, as observed in VHL patients and most sporadic ccRCCs, constitutive upregulation of HIF results in transcriptional activation of angiogenesis-related genes, such as VEGF. Differences in angiogenic activity within the group of ccRCCs were reported and strong genotype-phenotype correlations were found in patients with VHL disease, raising a question about the importance of VHL inactivation status in angiogenic behaviour and tumour progression. Methods : To address this question, we investigated the influence of VHL mutation (direct sequencing)/hypermethylation (methylation-specific PCR) on angiogenesis/tumour parameters (immunohistochemistry) in 150 patients with sporadic ccRCC. Results : We found no significant association between VHL mutation or methylation and angiogenesis/tumour parameters. Conclusions : These data indicate that tumour progression and angiogenesis are not directly influenced by VHL alterations and that additional genetic/epigenetic events should be considered to explain the diverse angiogenic and proliferative behaviour during tumour progression.