Immunohistochemical expression of apolipoprotein B and 4-hydroxynonenal proteins in colorectal carcinoma patients: a retrospective study

AIM: To assess the association of the expression of apolipoprotein B (apoB) and 4-hydroxynonenal (4HNE) with the clinicopathological data of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC). METHODS: We obtained 80 CRC histopathological specimens sent to the Pathology Laboratory of Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia from 2015 to 2019. Data on demographic factors, body mass index (BMI), and clinicopathological characteristics were also collected. Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues were stained by using an optimized immunohistochemical protocol. RESULTS: Patients were mostly older than 50 years, male, Malay, and overweight or obese. A high apoB expression was observed in 87.5% CRC samples (70/80), while a high 4HNE expression was observed in only 17.5% (14/80) of CRCs. The expression of apoB was significantly associated with the sigmoid and rectosigmoid tumor sites (p =0.001) and tumor size 3-5 cm (p =0.005). 4HNE expression was significantly associated with tumor size 3-5 cm (p =0.045). Other variables were not significantly associated with the expression of either marker. CONCLUSION: ApoB and 4HNE proteins may play a role in promoting CRC carcinogenesis.