ROLE OF PROTEOGLYCANS AS PROGNOSTIC AND PREDICTIVE BIOMARKERS ON NON SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER AND ITS IMPACT IN THE PULMONARY CARCINOGENESIS

Abstract

Despite all the advances in the lung cancer diagnosis and treatment this disease is still the one with the highest death rate among all types of cancer. This characteristic is closely related to the diagnosis of lung cancer which usually occurs in advanced stages of the disease and at that point the options of treatment are basically palliatives. Regarding that, it is urgent the development new molecular markers capable of predict the tumor behavior. The extracellular matrix is intimately involved in the carcinogenesis and in the development of metastasis. Among all its components are the glycosaminoglycans and the proteoglycans, molecules that are capable of influence the cellular behavior and the tissue dynamics. The heparan sulfate and chondroitin sulfate are parto f the glycosaminoglycan family and form proteoglycans like versican, biglycan, syndecan, glypican and perlecan. In some types of cancer it has been observed that these molecules present a different expression pattern when in the presence of cancer cells and they have the ability to influence the tumoral development facilitating processes such as angiogenesis and metastasis. In spite of all that, the present study pretend to: 1) measure the expression of glycosaminoglycans in lung câncer specimens through electroforesis; 2) analyse the location of these molecules in the tumors by immunohistochemistry; 3) evaluate the gene expression of the proteoglycans; 4)determine the cells that are responsible for the production of proteoglycans in a lung cancer cell line