KIAA1199 overexpression is associated with abnormal expression of EMT markers and is a novel independent prognostic biomarker for hepatocellular carcinoma

PURPOSE: To determined KIAA1199 expression and investigate its correlation with the clinicopathologic data and prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), as well as markers of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT); N-cadherin, E-cadherin and vimentin. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Western blot, quantitative real-time PCR, and immunohistochemical staining were used to measure KIAA1199 expression in human HCC specimens. Subsequently, the correlation between KIAA1199 expression and the pathological characteristics of HCC patients was analyzed. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to explore the risk factors associated with disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). RESULTS: KIAA1199 expression was remarkably increased in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues compared to paracarcinomatous tissues. This phenomenon was accompanied by aberrant expression of EMT-associated markers. In addition, high KIAA1199 expression was associated with severe pathological symptoms, low DFS, and low OS. Results of the multivariate analysis showed that KIAA1199 expression may be an independent predictor of low disease-free survival and OS of HCC patients. CONCLUSION: KIAA1199 overexpression in HCC patients is associated with aberrant expression of EMT-associated markers and severe clinicopathological symptoms, and thus may function as a marker of poor prognosis in HCC.