BC047440 overexpression is a risk factor for tumor invasion and poor prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background/aims: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between a new tumor-relative protein (BC047440) expression and clinic pathological parameters of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and to evaluate the prognostic value of BC047440 for HCC patients.

Methods: Following the prokaryotic expression and polyclonal antibodies generation of BC047440, two methods, including western blot and immunohistochemical staining were employed to detect BC047440 expression in 68 HCC specimens. The correlation between BC047440 expression and clinicopathologic outcome, and prognostic value of BC047440 for HCC patients were analyzed.

Results: The polyclonal antibodies could effectively recognize endogenous BC047440 in HCC tissues. Western blot and immunohistochemical staining revealed that the expression of BC047440 protein was higher in HCCs than that in adjacent tissues and normal liver tissues. Statistical analysis showed that there was a good correlation between BC047440 expression and tumor size and invasion of HCC. HCC patients with BC047440-positive expression showed a significantly poor prognosis than those with BC047440-negative expression.

Conclusions: BC047440 has a regulatory function in progress of HCC and it may become a helpful indicator in handling HCC treatment and judging invasion.