Objective: To clarify the expression change of PPARdelta gene in human rectal cancer tissues and determine the correlation of PPARdelta expression with the clinical and pathological parameters of rectal cancer.
Methods: Applying real-time RT-PCR, we quantified PPARdelta mRNA in 86 tissues from excised primary rectal cancers. In each case, accompanying normal mucosa was collected for comparison.
Results: Among the 86 rectal cancer tissues, 48 (55.8%) cases showed PPARdelta overexpression: 39 (81.3%) tumors gave an expression level 1.5 to 5.0 times, 5 (10.4%) tumors 10 to 20 times, and 4 (8.3%) tumors more than 20 times relative to normal mucosa. However, the general level of PPARdelta mRNA in rectal cancer tissues is not statistically different from that in normal mucosa. There was no evidence for the relationships of PPARdelta expression with cell differentiation, pathological categories and Dukes stages.
Conclusion: The expression of PPARdelta gene in rectal cancers is not statistically different from that in normal mucosa, and it is not correlated with cell differentiation, pathological categories and Dukes stages.