Immunoprofile of some transmembrane adhesion molecules in oral squamous cell carcinoma

Cancer of oral cavity is an increasingly public health concern, ranking as the seventh most frequent cancer in Europe and it is the eleventh deadliest cancer. Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) has one of the lowest 5-year survival rates, about 50% of these patients will die within five years. Tumors arising in this area often exhibit highly aggressive characteristics, with a strong tendency toward local infiltration and distant spread, leading many patients to be diagnosed with advanced locoregional disease. Thus, it becomes necessary to identify new biomarkers with significant impact on the diagnosis and prognosis of OSCC, to improve clinical management and the quality of life of these patients. Studies in recent decades have investigated the involvement of adhesion molecules in OSCC initiation, tumorigenesis, progression and dissemination. Based on these considerations, this study sought to evaluate the immunoreactivity of three transmembrane adhesion molecules (desmoglein-3, claudin-4, and claudin-7) in primary OSCC and their lymph node (LN) metastases, as well as to assess their potential prognostic significance. To achieve this, we analyzed 39 OSCC samples from diverse anatomical regions and their associated locoregional LN metastases using enzymatic immunohistochemistry, applying integrated optical density (IOD) for quantitative assessment. Our results highlighted a progressive decrease of membranous staining pattern followed by a progressive increase in cytoplasmic and nuclear reactivity for all three investigated markers as these lesions progress from low-grade to high-grade one. The highest cytoplasmic and nuclear reactivity was noticed in poorly differentiated forms, mainly at the periphery of tumor proliferation and at the invasion front. A similar reactivity to that from primary tumors was also noticed in metastatic LN proliferations. So, we concluded that these three biomarkers are involved in OSCC progression and dissemination and their investigation may have prognostic and therapeutic utility.