Journal of experimental & clinical cancer research : CR
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J. Exp. Clin. Cancer Res. · Mar 2007
Neurotrophin receptors and heparanase: a functional axis in human medulloblastoma invasion.
Medulloblastoma (MB) is the most common malignant brain tumor of childhood. Although modern therapy has produced five-year survival rates as high as 70% for some MB patients, this resulted in significant long-term treatment-related morbidity. The cellular mechanisms involved in metastatic spread of medulloblastoma are largely unknown. ⋯ Thirdly, by performing investigations to elucidate prognostic implications of HPSE and TrkC/p75NTR expression in MB, we demonstrate a correlation between p75NTR and HPSE expression. Finally, by using antibodies specific to TrkC and immunohistochemistry (IHC) we prove that IHC scores reveal a significant expression of HPSE in 76% of MB tissues from children aged 3 years and older. Taken together, our data provide evidence that HPSE functionality, in a context linked to TrkC and p75NTR activation, may play critical roles in medulloblastoma tumor invasion and progression.