Conclusions
We suggest that there is an association between the NOTCH1 signaling pathway activated by IH and the biologic behavior of MEC.
Objective
Intratumoral hypoxia (IH) occurs during cellular proliferation of malignant tumors. This phenomenon is characterized by a decrease in oxygen levels in the neoplastic microenvironment. Throughout this condition, the proteins HIF-1α, NOTCH1, ADAM12, and HB-EGF can be activated, triggering signaling pathways associated with tumor invasiveness through invadopodia formation. This study aimed to evaluate the immunostaining of HIF-1α, NOTCH1, ADAM12, and HBEGF in 19 cases of mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC) and 10 samples of salivary glands (control group). Study design: The immunoperoxidase technique was employed to detect the proteins of interest. The Student t test was used to compare immunoexpression between MEC samples and the control group.
Results
Protein immunostaining was statistically significantly higher in MEC samples than in the control group (P < .01), and the proteins were especially overexpressed in epidermoid cells of MEC. Conclusions: We suggest that there is an association between the NOTCH1 signaling pathway activated by IH and the biologic behavior of MEC.