Novel role of microtubule-associated serine/threonine kinase like (MASTL) as a good prognostic factor in oral squamous cell carcinoma and evidences for a link with Smad7.

Introduction: Upregulated microtubule-associated serine/threonine kinase like (MASTL), a cell cycle kinase required for a progression through mitosis, expression has been associated to poor prognosis. This study is aimed to investigate the clinical relevance of MASTL expression in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), and a possible mechanistic link with epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT).

Methods: Immunohistochemical analysis of MASTL, E-cadherin, Vimentin, and Smad7 was performed in paraffin-embedded tissue specimens from 148 OSCC patients.