Evaluation of aberrant metabolism related proteins in oral submucous fibrosis: A pilot study

• Published in: Journal of oral biosciences Vol. 60; no. 4; pp. 87 - 91
• Main Authors: Rai, Vertika, Bose, Surajit, Mukherjee, Rashmi, Sarbajna, Arpita, Chakraborty, Chandan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 01.12.2018
• Subjects: Immunohistochemistry; Metabolism-related proteins; Oral submucous fibrosis; OSFW; Immunohistochemistry; GLUT1; Metabolism-related proteins; OSF; OC; IHC; FASN; HNSCC; Oral submucous fibrosis; HK2
• ISSN: 1349-0079
• DOI: 10.1016/j.job.2018.08.002

The mortality rate within five years of diagnosis is very high (>60%) for patients with oral cancer (OC), primarily due to late stage detection. Oral submucous fibrosis (OSF) is a heterogeneous oral lesion that has a high probability of developing into OC. One of the hallmark characteristics of malignant cells is alteration of metabolic pathways as the disease progresses towards carcinogenesis. This study aims to examine the altered metabolism-related proteins using immunohistochemistry (IHC). The expression levels of glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1), hexokinase 2 (HK2), and fatty acid synthase (FASN) were analyzed in normal oral mucosa (NOM) (n = 30) and oral sub mucous fibrosis (OSF) (n = 30) using IHC. The degree of intensity and distribution of immunostaining was semi-quantitatively assessed. The expression levels of GLUT-1, HK 2, and FASN were higher in the OSF group (p < 0.001) than in NOM control group. These results indicate evidence of increased levels and alteration in the expression of metabolism-related proteins. Overexpression of these proteins may play an oncogenic role in the proliferative processes and disease progression of OSF. These results serve as a fundamental base for employing these proteins in future clinical applications. [Display omitted] •Metabolic reprograming is a hallmark of cancer.•This study highlights the metabolic alterations in oral precancer.•Targeting changes at the early stage provide better diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.