Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Journal of Clinical Pathology logoLink to Journal of Clinical Pathology
. 1996 Jul;49(7):560–564. doi: 10.1136/jcp.49.7.560

Significance of MUC1 and MUC2 mucin expression in colorectal cancer.

Y Ajioka 1, L J Allison 1, J R Jass 1
PMCID: PMC500570  PMID: 8813954

Abstract

AIMS: To compare the lineage specific distribution of MUC1 and MUC2 mucins in normal colorectal mucosa and adenocarcinoma and to identify pathological correlations. METHODS: Paraffin wax sections from 51 colorectal cancers were examined for the expression of MUC1 and MUC2, non-O-acetyl sialic acid and the carbohydrate epitopes Lex, Ley, sialosyl-Lex, sialosyl-Tn, and Tn using standard histochemical methods. RESULTS: MUC1, Lex and Ley co-localised with columnar cell secretions, whereas MUC2, mild periodic acid Schiff and sialosyl-Tn co-localised with goblet cell mucin in both normal and malignant tissues. Sialosyl-Lex and Tn were associated with both lineages. In normal tissues MUC1, Lex and Ley showed only trace expression by crypt base columnar cells. Cancers could be classified into four phenotypes (MUC2+/MUC1-, MUC2+/MUC1+, MUC2-/MUC1+, MUC2-/MUC1-). Particular phenotypes showed significant correlations with cancer type, lymph node spread and peritumoral lymphocytic infiltration and trends falling short of significance in relation to grade of differentiation and contiguous adenoma. CONCLUSIONS: Classification of colorectal cancer by means of lineage specific function may be relevant to both pathogenesis and prognosis.

Full text

PDF
560

Images in this article

561Image
on p.561
561Image
on p.561
562Image
on p.562
562Image
on p.562

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Blank M., Klussmann E., Krüger-Krasagakes S., Schmitt-Gräff A., Stolte M., Bornhoeft G., Stein H., Xing P. X., McKenzie I. F., Verstijnen C. P. Expression of MUC2-mucin in colorectal adenomas and carcinomas of different histological types. Int J Cancer. 1994 Nov 1;59(3):301–306. doi: 10.1002/ijc.2910590302. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Burchell J., Gendler S., Taylor-Papadimitriou J., Girling A., Lewis A., Millis R., Lamport D. Development and characterization of breast cancer reactive monoclonal antibodies directed to the core protein of the human milk mucin. Cancer Res. 1987 Oct 15;47(20):5476–5482. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Carrato C., Balague C., de Bolos C., Gonzalez E., Gambus G., Planas J., Perini J. M., Andreu D., Real F. X. Differential apomucin expression in normal and neoplastic human gastrointestinal tissues. Gastroenterology. 1994 Jul;107(1):160–172. doi: 10.1016/0016-5085(94)90073-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Chang S. K., Dohrman A. F., Basbaum C. B., Ho S. B., Tsuda T., Toribara N. W., Gum J. R., Kim Y. S. Localization of mucin (MUC2 and MUC3) messenger RNA and peptide expression in human normal intestine and colon cancer. Gastroenterology. 1994 Jul;107(1):28–36. doi: 10.1016/0016-5085(94)90057-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Chang W. W., Leblond C. P. Renewal of the epithelium in the descending colon of the mouse. I. Presence of three cell populations: vacuolated-columnar, mucous and argentaffin. Am J Anat. 1971 May;131(1):73–99. doi: 10.1002/aja.1001310105. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Davidson S. E., McKenzie J. L., Beard M. E., Hart D. N. The tissue distribution of the 3 alpha-fucosyl-N-acetyl lactosamine determinant recognized by the CD15 monoclonal antibodies CMRF-7 and 27. Pathology. 1988 Jan;20(1):24–31. doi: 10.3109/00313028809085192. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Gendler S. J., Lancaster C. A., Taylor-Papadimitriou J., Duhig T., Peat N., Burchell J., Pemberton L., Lalani E. N., Wilson D. Molecular cloning and expression of human tumor-associated polymorphic epithelial mucin. J Biol Chem. 1990 Sep 5;265(25):15286–15293. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Gum J. R., Jr Mucin genes and the proteins they encode: structure, diversity, and regulation. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol. 1992 Dec;7(6):557–564. doi: 10.1165/ajrcmb/7.6.557. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Hanski C., Drechsler K., Hanisch F. G., Sheehan J., Manske M., Ogorek D., Klussmann E., Hanski M. L., Blank M., Xing P. X. Altered glycosylation of the MUC-1 protein core contributes to the colon carcinoma-associated increase of mucin-bound sialyl-Lewis(x) expression. Cancer Res. 1993 Sep 1;53(17):4082–4088. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Hanski C., Hanski M. L., Zimmer T., Ogorek D., Devine P., Riecken E. O. Characterization of the major sialyl-Lex-positive mucins present in colon, colon carcinoma, and sera of patients with colorectal cancer. Cancer Res. 1995 Feb 15;55(4):928–933. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Itzkowitz S. H., Bloom E. J., Lau T. S., Kim Y. S. Mucin associated Tn and sialosyl-Tn antigen expression in colorectal polyps. Gut. 1992 Apr;33(4):518–523. doi: 10.1136/gut.33.4.518. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Jass J. R., Allison L. J., Edgar S. G. Distribution of sialosyl Tn and Tn antigens within normal and malignant colorectal epithelium. J Pathol. 1995 Jun;176(2):143–149. doi: 10.1002/path.1711760207. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Jass J. R., Morson B. C. Reporting colorectal cancer. J Clin Pathol. 1987 Sep;40(9):1016–1023. doi: 10.1136/jcp.40.9.1016. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Jass J. R., Roberton A. M. Colorectal mucin histochemistry in health and disease: a critical review. Pathol Int. 1994 Jul;44(7):487–504. doi: 10.1111/j.1440-1827.1994.tb02599.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Kaye G. I., Fenoglio C. M., Pascal R. R., Lane N. Comparative electron microscopic features of normal, hyperplastic, and adenomatous human colonic epithelium. Variations in cellular structure relative to the process of epithelial differentiation. Gastroenterology. 1973 May;64(5):926–945. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Lorenzsonn V., Trier J. S. The fine structure of human rectal mycosa. The epithelial lining of the base of the crypt. Gastroenterology. 1968 Jul;55(1):88–101. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Nakamori S., Ota D. M., Cleary K. R., Shirotani K., Irimura T. MUC1 mucin expression as a marker of progression and metastasis of human colorectal carcinoma. Gastroenterology. 1994 Feb;106(2):353–361. doi: 10.1016/0016-5085(94)90592-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Ogata S., Ho I., Chen A., Dubois D., Maklansky J., Singhal A., Hakomori S., Itzkowitz S. H. Tumor-associated sialylated antigens are constitutively expressed in normal human colonic mucosa. Cancer Res. 1995 May 1;55(9):1869–1874. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Ogata S., Maimonis P. J., Itzkowitz S. H. Mucins bearing the cancer-associated sialosyl-Tn antigen mediate inhibition of natural killer cell cytotoxicity. Cancer Res. 1992 Sep 1;52(17):4741–4746. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Ogata S., Uehara H., Chen A., Itzkowitz S. H. Mucin gene expression in colonic tissues and cell lines. Cancer Res. 1992 Nov 1;52(21):5971–5978. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Ohe Y., Hinoda Y., Irimura T., Imai K., Yachi A. Expression of sulfated carbohydrate chains detected by monoclonal antibody 91.9H in human gastric cancer tissues. Jpn J Cancer Res. 1994 Apr;85(4):400–408. doi: 10.1111/j.1349-7006.1994.tb02373.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Toribara N. W., Gum J. R., Jr, Culhane P. J., Lagace R. E., Hicks J. W., Petersen G. M., Kim Y. S. MUC-2 human small intestinal mucin gene structure. Repeated arrays and polymorphism. J Clin Invest. 1991 Sep;88(3):1005–1013. doi: 10.1172/JCI115360. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Tytgat K. M., Büller H. A., Opdam F. J., Kim Y. S., Einerhand A. W., Dekker J. Biosynthesis of human colonic mucin: Muc2 is the prominent secretory mucin. Gastroenterology. 1994 Nov;107(5):1352–1363. doi: 10.1016/0016-5085(94)90537-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Zotter S., Lossnitzer A., Hageman P. C., Delemarre J. F., Hilkens J., Hilgers J. Immunohistochemical localization of the epithelial marker MAM-6 in invasive malignancies and highly dysplastic adenomas of the large intestine. Lab Invest. 1987 Aug;57(2):193–199. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Clinical Pathology are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES