Significance of PTEN protein expression of in retinoblastoma

    LIAN Liª²Hong, YANG Wanª²Guang

    Department of Ophthalmology, First Affiliated Hospital, Henan University, Kaifeng 475001, China

    ¡¾Abstract¡¿ AIM: To investigate the expression of PTEN protein in retinoblastoma and its clinical significance. METHODS: Expression of PTEN protein was detected in 36 specimens of retinoblastoma and 10 specimens of normal retina using SP immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: The positive rate of PTEN protein(21 cases, 58.3%) in retinoblastoma was much more frequent than that of normal retina (0%, P=0.0000) and the expression level of PTEN varied between the pathology grades (differentiated 73.7%; undifferentiated 41.2%, P<0.05) and among the clinic stages (stage¢ñ 75.0%; stage ¢ò 62.5%; stage ¢ó 41.7%, P<0.05). The higher the pathology grade and the clinical stage of tumors, the lower the expression of PTEN protein. CONCLUSION: The abnormal expression of PTEN protein may play an important role in the development of retinoblastoma. Detection of PTEN protein may be useful for the assessment of retinoblastoma development and its prognosis. ......