Tissue microarray analysis of human FRAT1 expression and its correlation with the subcellular localisation of β-catenin in ovarian tumours

The mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer are poorly understood, but evidence suggests that aberrant activation of Wnt/β-catenin signalling pathway plays a significant role in this malignancy. However, the molecular defects that contribute to the activation of this pathway have not been elucidated. Frequently rearranged in advanced T-cell lymphomas-1 (FRAT1) is a candidate for the regulation of cytoplasmic β-catenin. In this study, we developed in situ hybridisation probes to evaluate the presence of FRAT1 and used an anti-β-catenin antibody to evaluate by immunohistochemistry the expression levels and subcellular localisation of β-catenin in ovarian cancer tissue microarrays. Expression of FRAT1 was found in some human normal tissues and 47% of ovarian adenocarcinomas. A total of 46% of ovarian serous adenocarcinomas were positive for FRAT1 expression. Accumulation of β-catenin in the nucleus and/or cytoplasm was observed in 55% ovarian adenocarcinomas and in 59% of serous adenocarcinomas. A significant association was observed in ovarian serous adenocarcinomas between FRAT1 and β-catenin expression (P<0.01). These findings support that Wnt/β-catenin signalling may be aberrantly activated through FRAT1 overexpression in ovarian serous adenocarcinomas. The mechanism behind the overexpression of FRAT1 in ovarian serous adenocarcinomas and its significance is yet to be investigated.