Objective: To investigate the gender-related expressions of androgen (AR), estrogen alpha (ERα) and beta (ERβ) receptors and aromatase enzyme in oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCC).
Materials and methods: A total of 60 cases of OSCC (30 from males and 30 from females) were retrieved and submitted to immunohistochemistry. Also, steroid expression was studied in two OSCC cell lines using Western blotting and immunofluorescence.
Results: Immunohistochemistry demonstrated that ERβ was expressed in almost 40% of the cases and AR in 26%. Aromatase enzyme and ERα were less commonly expressed. Only AR presented statistically significant differences between genders. Western blotting and immunofluorescence analysis demonstrated that ERβ was abundantly expressed in the nuclei of both cell lines and aromatase enzyme presented a cytoplasmic expression.
Conclusion: The detection of steroid hormones, especially ERβ, can indicate a role of these proteins in the process of carcinogenesis of some OSCC. Further studies of the mechanisms involved may provide important biological information regarding therapeutic approaches.