Expression Patterns of Snail1, E-Cadherin and N-Cadherin Proteins in the Developing Kidney and in Wilms’ Tumor (Nephroblastoma)

• Published in: Rare cancers and therapy Vol. 2; no. 1-2; pp. 1 - 9
• Main Authors: Schmid, Sebastian Christoph, Blechschmidt, Kareen, Schulz, Stefan, Becker, Karl Friedrich, Weirich, Gregor
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Heidelberg Springer Healthcare 01-12-2014
• Subjects: Internal Medicine; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Original Research; Wilms’ tumor; N-cadherin; Snail1; Oncology; Nephroblastoma; Snail; E-cadherin; MET; Kidney
• ISSN: 2195-6014; 2195-6022
• DOI: 10.1007/s40487-014-0005-0

Introduction
Snail1 is a transcription factor that suppresses E-cadherin. The roles of Snail1 and E-cadherin in mesenchyme–epithelial transition (MET) are not yet clear. We explored the role of Snail1, E-cadherin and N-cadherin in fetal kidneys and compared it with Wilms’ tumor/nephroblastoma (WT), a rare mesenchymal kidney tumor, to better understand MET in organogenesis and malignancy.
Methods
A total of 19 samples were analyzed, consisting of seven childhood WT, two adult WT and ten fetal kidneys. Immunohistochemistry was used to analyze Snail1, E-cadherin, and N-cadherin protein expression in the samples as well as their cellular localization.
Results
Six of the childhood WT showed a cytoplasmic Snail1 reaction. Adult WT were Snail1 negative. E-cadherin expression was found in epithelial structures in eight of the nine WT. Tubular epithelial cells showed a Snail1 positivity in the cytoplasm of seven kidneys. E-cadherin expression was found in epithelia of all ten fetal kidneys, but not in the mesenchyme. Four out of ten fetal kidneys and six out of nine WT were N-cadherin positive. One out of ten fetal kidneys showed a nuclear expression of Snail1 in undifferentiated mesenchymal cells.
Conclusions
Snail1 seems to play a role in kidney differentiation and in childhood WT. Our findings do not support the assumption that WT recapitulate renal organogenesis, at least not with respect to distribution patterns of cadherins and Snail1.