Oncoprotein expression in human synovial tissue: an immunohistochemical study of different types of arthritis

Br J Rheumatol. 1996 Oct;35(10):933-42. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/35.10.933.

Abstract

Based on the fact that synovial lining cells have some properties of transformed-appearing cells, we have examined the expression of Myc, Myb, Fos, Jun and Ras oncoproteins in synovial tissues from patients with different types of arthritis. Formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded sections of synovial tissue from 12 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), 14 with reactive arthritis (ReA), nine with other seronegative arthritis (OSA), seven with bacterial arthritis (BA), eight with probable bacterial arthritis (PBA) and eight with osteoarthritis (OA) were studied using the immunoperoxidase staining technique. The oncoproteins studied were expressed both in the synovial lining layer and in the sublining layer, consisting of lymphocytes, other inflammatory cells and blood vessels. Among the six disease entities, RA and OA appeared to be the most distinct, whereas the results obtained for ReA and OSA, and on the other hand for BA and PBA, closely resembled each other. The expression of Myc, Myb, Fos and Jun was significantly correlated both to the degree of synovial hypercellularity and the synovial lymphocytic infiltration. For Ras, such a correlation could not be seen. We conclude that we find no evidence of a cell lineage-specific or a disease-specific abnormality of proto-oncogene products in RA, and the expression of these oncoproteins is consistent with inflammation rather than with any primary abnormality of cell growth.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Antibody Specificity
  • Arthritis / diagnosis*
  • Arthritis / metabolism
  • Arthritis, Infectious / metabolism
  • Arthritis, Reactive / metabolism
  • Arthritis, Rheumatoid / metabolism
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / analysis
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / biosynthesis
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / immunology
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Immunohistochemistry
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Oncogene Proteins / analysis
  • Oncogene Proteins / biosynthesis*
  • Oncogene Proteins / immunology
  • Osteoarthritis / metabolism
  • Prohibitins
  • Proto-Oncogene Mas
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins / analysis
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins / biosynthesis
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins / immunology
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / analysis
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / biosynthesis
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / immunology
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-jun / analysis
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-jun / biosynthesis
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-jun / immunology
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myb
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc / analysis
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc / biosynthesis
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc / immunology
  • Synovial Membrane / chemistry*
  • Trans-Activators / analysis
  • Trans-Activators / biosynthesis
  • Trans-Activators / immunology
  • ras Proteins / analysis
  • ras Proteins / biosynthesis
  • ras Proteins / immunology

Substances

  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • MAS1 protein, human
  • Oncogene Proteins
  • PHB2 protein, human
  • Prohibitins
  • Proto-Oncogene Mas
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-jun
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myb
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc
  • Trans-Activators
  • ras Proteins