Expression of cytoskeleton regulatory protein Mena in human hepatocellular carcinoma and its prognostic significance

The molecular mechanisms of the development and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are poorly understood. The main objective of this study was to analyze the expression of Enabled [mammalian Ena (Mena)] protein and its clinical significance in human HCC. The Mena expression was examined at mRNA and protein levels by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting analysis in ten paired HCC tissues and the adjacent normal tissues. The expression of Mena protein in 81 specimens of HCC tissues was determined by immunohistochemistry. Associations of Mena expression with the clinicopathological features were analyzed, and prognosis of HCC patients was evaluated. The result shows the expression of Mena mRNA and protein was higher in HCC than in the adjacent normal tissues in ten paired samples. Mena was mainly accumulated in the cytoplasm of tumor cells and over-expressed in 40.74 % (33/81) patients by immunohistochemical staining. Over-expression of Mena was significantly associated with poor cellular differentiation (P = 0.025), advanced tumor stage (P = 0.003) and worse disease-free survival (DFS, P < 0.001). In addition, Mena is an independent prognostic factor for DFS in multivariate analysis (HR 2.309, 95 % CI 1.104–4.828; P = 0.026). Mena is up-regulated in HCC and associated with tumor differentiation and clinical stage. Mena may be an independent prognostic marker for DFS of HCC patients.