Published online Jul 21, 2015. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v21.i27.8418
Peer-review started: March 17, 2015
First decision: March 26, 2015
Revised: April 11, 2015
Accepted: May 7, 2015
Article in press: May 7, 2015
Published online: July 21, 2015
Processing time: 79 Days and 6.3 Hours
AIM: To compare kinesin family member 1B (KIF1B) expression with clinicopathologic parameters and prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients.
METHODS: KIF1B protein and mRNA expression was assessed in HCC and paracarcinomatous (PC) tissues from 68 patients with HCC using Western blot and quantitative real-time reverse transcription-PCR, respectively. Student’s t-tests were used to analyze relationships between clinicopathologic parameters and KIF1B expression, the Kaplan-Meier method was used to analyze survival outcomes, and the log-rank test was used to compare survival differences between groups.
RESULTS: Mean protein and mRNA levels of KIF1B were similar between HCC and PC tissues. However, HCC tissues with vein invasions had significantly lower KIF1B protein levels compared to those without vein invasions (2.30 ± 0.82 relative units vs 2.77 ± 0.84 relative units, P < 0.05). KIF1B protein levels in HCC tissues from patients with recurrence during the follow-up period were significantly lower than those without recurrence (2.31 ± 0.92 relative units vs 2.80 ± 0.80 relative units, P < 0.05). However, KIF1B protein and mRNA expression in HCC patients was not associated with other clinicopathologic parameters. Ratios of KIF1B mRNA expression in HCC tissues to those in PC tissues were correlated with overall survival (13.5 mo vs 20.0 mo, P < 0.05) and disease-free survival (11.5 mo vs 19.5 mo, P < 0.05).
CONCLUSION: Downregulation of KIF1B in HCC tissues is associated with poor prognosis; additional clinical studies are needed to confirm whether KIF1B can serve as a prognostic marker.
Core tip: Expression of kinesin family member 1B (KIF1B) protein and mRNA did not significantly differ between hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues and paracarcinomatous tissues. KIF1B protein levels in HCC tissues were inversely correlated with recurrence and tumor vein invasion. Furthermore, ratios of KIF1B mRNA in HCC tissues to paracarcinomatous tissues correlated with overall survival and disease-free survival for patients with HCC. Downregulation of KIF1B mRNA in HCC tissues was associated with poor prognosis.