The association of Wnt-signalling and EMT markers with clinical characteristics in women with endometrial cancer

Živa Ledinek; Monika Sobočan; Damjan Sisinger; Marko Hojnik; Tomaž Büdefeld; Uroš Potočnik; Jure Knez

doi:10.3389/fonc.2023.1013463

The association of Wnt-signalling and EMT markers with clinical characteristics in women with endometrial cancer

Front Oncol. 2023 Mar 8:13:1013463. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1013463. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Živa Ledinek¹, Monika Sobočan^{2

3}, Damjan Sisinger¹, Marko Hojnik¹, Tomaž Büdefeld⁴, Uroš Potočnik^{4

5

6}, Jure Knez^{2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pathology, University Medical Centre Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia.
² Divison for Gynaecology and Perinatology, University Medical Centre Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia.
³ Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, Faculty of Medicine University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia.
⁴ Center for Human Molecular Genetics and Pharmacogenomics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia.
⁵ Laboratory for Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Genomics, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia.
⁶ Department for Science and Research, University Medical Centre Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia.

Abstract

Endometrial cancer is the most common gynecologic malignancy in the developed world. Risk stratification and treatment approaches are changing due to better understanding of tumor biology. Upregulated Wnt signaling plays an important role in cancer initiation and progression with promising potential for development of specific Wnt inhibitor therapy. One of the ways in which Wnt signaling contributes to progression of cancer, is by activating epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in tumor cells, causing the expression of mesenchymal markers, and enabling tumor cells to dissociate and migrate. This study analyzed the expression of Wnt signaling and EMT markers in endometrial cancer. Wnt signaling and EMT markers were significantly correlated with hormone receptors status in EC, but not with other clinico-pathological characteristics. Expression of Wnt antagonist, Dkk1 was significantly different between the ESGO-ESTRO-ESP patient risk assessment categories using integrated molecular risk assessment.

Keywords: DKK1; E-cadherin; EMT - epithelial to mesenchymal transformation; N-cadherin; Wnt pathway; endometrial cancer (EC); β-catenin (B-catenin).

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the Slovenian Research Agency grants number J3-4523, J3-3069 and the Internal Research Project of the University Medical Centre Maribor IRP 2021/01-21. U.P. was supported by the Slovenian Research Agency research core funding P3-0427. T.B. was supported by the Slovenian Research Agency research core funding P3-0067.