Expression of PRR11 protein and its correlation with pancreatic cancer and effect on survival

This study aimed at finding the relationship between the level of expression of the PRR11 protein in pancreatic carcinoma, and the clinical characteristics of the tumor. PCR technique was used to analyze the expression levels of the PRR11 gene in 38 samples from pancreatic cancer patients and 10 samples from normal pancreatic tissues. Western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry were used to measure the expression of the PRR11. Additionally, the migration ability of cancerous cells expressing PRR11 and those with inhibited expression were compared using a wound healing assay. Finally, the relationships between the expression level of PRR11 protein and variables such as tumor size, tumor invasion, TNM stages, and the overall survival time of patients with pancreatic cancer were calculated. Our results showed the expression level of the PRR11 gene in pancreatic cancer tissues was significantly higher than that in normal pancreatic tissues. The detection of PRR11 protein in cancer tissues versus normal tissues was 78.9 (30/38) vs. 0 (0/10), respectively. The western blot results confirmed this by showing a significantly higher level of expression of the PRR11 protein in pancreatic cancer tissues than in normal tissues (P<0.05). Inhibiting the expression of PRR11 in cancer cells reduced the migration ability of the cells. Finally, the expression of PRR11 was positively correlated with the invasion, disease and tissue differentiation stages of the pancreatic cancer. By comparing clinical data and expression patterns in patients, we found the survival rate in those expressing the PRR11 protein by immunohistochemistry to be lower than in those with tissues negative to the PRR11 protein. Our results show, the expression of PRR11 protein in pancreatic cancer is closely related to the development of the cancer and a poor prognosis. These findings provide a theoretical and experimental basis for approaching the diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic cancer using PRR11 as a molecular target.