The expression and clinical significance of Connexin43 (Cx43) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with tissue microarray

Objective To investigate the relationship of the expression and clinical significance of Cx43 in HCC.Methods The expression of Cx43 was examined by tissue microarray and immunohistochemical SP method in 81 cases of tumor-adjacent tissues, 82 cases of liver cirrhosis tissue and 359 cases of HCC tissue.Results The positive rate of Cx43 in HCC was lower than the tumor-adjacent tissues and the liver cirrhosis tissue (all the P<0.01) .The positive rate of Cx43 in tumor-adjacent tissues was higher than liver cirrhosis tissue (P<0.05) .The positive rate of Cx43 in HCC was related to the histological grade (P<0.001) and post-operation survival period (P<0.05) and the diameter of the tumor (P<0.05) .But it was not related to the clinical stage, lymph node metastases, and embolus of cancer in aqueduct or portal vein.Conclusion The abnormal positive rate of Cx43 in HCC correlates with the development and the prognosis.It may be a useful biomarker to the HCC.