Journal of Translational Medicine (May 2010)

CCL20/CCR6 expression profile in pancreatic cancer

  • Justinger Christoph,
  • Vicinus Benjamin,
  • Grimm Henner,
  • Wagner Mathias,
  • Ghadjar Pirus,
  • Frick Vilma,
  • Rubie Claudia,
  • Graeber Stefan,
  • Schilling Martin K

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/1479-5876-8-45
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8, no. 1
p. 45

Abstract

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Abstract Background CCL20 and its receptor CCR6 have been shown to play a role in the onset, development and metastatic spread of various gastrointestinal malignancies. In this study, the expression profile and clinical significance of the CCL20/CCR6 system in distinct benign, pre-malignant and malignant pancreatic tissues was investigated. Methods Using RealTime-PCR, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), Western Blot and immunohistochemistry, we have analyzed the expression profile of CCL20/CCR6 in resection specimens from patients with chronic pancreatitis (CP) (n = 22), pancreatic cystadenoma (PA) (n = 11) and pancreatic carcinoma (PCA) (n = 25) as well as in the respective matched normal pancreatic tissues. Results CCL20 mRNA and protein was weakly expressed in normal pancreatic tissues and CP and PA specimens but significantly up-regulated in PCA (8-fold) as compared to the matched normal tissue (P Conclusion CCL20 and CCR6 were significantly up-regulated in PCA as compared to the normal pancreatic tissue and CCL20 was significantly associated with advanced T-category in PCA patients. This suggests that CCL20 and CCR6 play a role in the development and progression of PCA and may constitute potential targets for novel treatment strategies.