Evaluation of Aquaporin-3 Role in Nonmelanoma Skin Cancer: An Immunohistochemical Study

Abstract

Aquaporin-3 (AQP3), is an aquaglyceroporin, that plays a role in cell proliferation, tumorigenesis, and cell migration. This study aimed at evaluating the possible role of AQP3 in nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC) pathogenesis through its immunohistochemical expression in skin biopsies of these diseases. One-hundred and thirty cutaneous specimens were studied. These included 60 cases of NMSC and 40 normal skin and 30 psoriasis samples, from age- and gender-matched subjects, as a control group. AQP3 was expressed in 66.7% of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) cases and in 93.3% of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) cases. Higher AQP3 expression (p = .01), expression percentage (p = .01), and H score (p = .04) were significantly associated with SCC compared to BCC. Normal skin and psoriasis showed significantly higher AQP3 expression (p = .001, p < .001, respectively), expression percentage (p < .001 for both), and H score values (p < .001, p = .001, respectively) compared to NMSC. Higher H score values in BCC were significantly associated with female gender (p = .02) and with nodular lesions (p > .001). Higher H score values in SCC were significantly associated with grade III tumors (p = .04) and AQP3 percentage of expression was significantly correlated with grade III tumors (r = .48, p = .009). In conclusion, AQP3 may play a role in NMSC pathogenesis. This probably occurs through aquaporin-mediated glycerol transport and ATP generation. Its downregulation, observed in the current work, is mostly a result of excessive proliferation. Further studies are needed to investigate the therapeutic effect of its inhibition in NMSC treatment.

Can aquaporins be used as diagnostic and prognostic markers for uterine smooth muscle tumours?

“…Recently, it has been shown that AQP3 expression might be related to development of several carcinomas including gastric carcinoma [26,27], oesophageal and oral squamous cell carcinoma [28], cervical carcinoma [29] and cancers of the thyroid [30], pancreas [31], prostate [32,33], ovary [34] and skin [35,36]. In our study, AQP3 expression was observed in all tissue samples examined in LMS group except in one case.…”

Is Aquaporin-3 a Determinant Factor of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Aging? An Immunohistochemical and Morphometric Study

“…29 However, Verkman et al 30 reported that cultured aortic endothelial cells from wild-type and AQP1-null mice had comparable morphology, growth, and adherence to different surfaces, but showed remarkable impairment in their migration. These findings suggested that endothelial AQP1 expression may facilitate cell migration.…”

Assessing the Expression of Aquaporin 3 Antigen-Recognition Sites in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

“…Our results were similar to the studies using anti-AQP3 antibodies prepared from AA180-228 and C terminus peptide of AQP3 in the SCCs of the lung, skin, and oral cavity, UC, prostate adenocarcinoma, and bronchioloalveolar carcinoma (Table 5 ). 17 , 18 , 20 , 29 – 32 , 34 , 35 , 38 , 39 Degradation of AQP3 protein located near the C terminus part in UC and AA180-228 part of AQP3 in OSCC is associated with a higher grade of the tumors and tumor cell invasion (muscle-invasive UC and OSCC with lymphatic metastasis cases), the underlying molecular mechanism of which remains unclear. 17 , 20 , 34 However, our results were contradictory to those of studies on medullary thyroid carcinoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, and triple-negative breast cancer, which suggested increased expression of AQP3 in these carcinomas (Table 5 ).…”