This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Yao, Y. Articles by Kitai, R. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Yao, Y. Articles by Kitai, R.

Macrophage Infiltration-associated Thymidine Phosphorylase Expression Correlates with Increased Microvessel Density and Poor Prognosis in Astrocytic Tumors

Department of Neurosurgery, Fukui Medical University, Fukui 910-1193, Japan

Purpose and Experimental Design: To clarify the significance of thymidine phosphorylase (TP)/platelet-derived endothelial cell growth factor/gliostatin in human glioma, we examined TP expression immunohistochemically in a series of 50 astrocytic tumors and correlated its expression with tumor angiogenesis and apoptosis, as well as prognosis.

Results: The majority of TP-positive cells were of macrophage origin, which was confirmed by immunostaining TP and CD68 on mirror sections. TP expression was significantly associated with glioma malignancy grading, intratumoral microvessel density, and VEGF expression but showed no relationship with apoptotic index or P53 expression. Regardless of glioma grading, patients with TP-positive tumors had a significantly shorter mean survival time than those with TP-negative tumors.

Conclusions: These findings suggest that TP might play a crucial role in angiogenesis during glioma development, and immunodetection of TP is useful for clinical prediction. Further studies are necessary to better elucidate the role of TP in glioma, which may provide insights into adequate TP-targeted therapy.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				J. Cheng, D.-H. Huo, D.-M. Kuang, J. Yang, L. Zheng, and S.-M. Zhuang Human Macrophages Promote the Motility and Invasiveness of Osteopontin-Knockdown Tumor Cells Cancer Res., June 1, 2007; 67(11): 5141 - 5147. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J-Y Han, E K Hong, S Y Lee, S M Yoon, D H Lee, and J S Lee Thymidine phosphorylase expression in tumour cells and tumour response to capecitabine plus docetaxel chemotherapy in non-small cell lung cancer J. Clin. Pathol., June 1, 2005; 58(6): 650 - 654. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				G. H. Zhu and E. L. Schwartz Expression of the Angiogenic Factor Thymidine Phosphorylase in THP-1 Monocytes: Induction by Autocrine Tumor Necrosis Factor-{alpha} and Inhibition by Aspirin Mol. Pharmacol., November 1, 2003; 64(5): 1251 - 1258. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]