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World J Gastroenterol. May 28, 2014; 20(20): 6123-6132
Published online May 28, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i20.6123
Clinicopathological utility of sialoglycoconjugates in diagnosing and treating colorectal cancer
Yoshinori Inagaki, Jianjun Gao, Peipei Song, Norihiro Kokudo, Munehiro Nakata, Wei Tang
Yoshinori Inagaki, Jianjun Gao, Peipei Song, Norihiro Kokudo, Wei Tang, Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery Division, Department of Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan
Munehiro Nakata, Department of Applied Biochemistry, Tokai University, Hiratsuka, Kanagawa 259-1292, Japan
Author contributions: Inagaki Y drafted the manuscript; Gao J and Song P did literature search and contributed to critical revision of intellectual content; Kokudo N, Nakata M and Tang W revised the manuscript and provided important suggestions; all authors reviewed and approved the final revised version.
Correspondence to: Wei Tang, MD, PhD, Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery Division, Department of Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan. tang-sur@h.u-tokyo.ac.jp
Telephone: +81-3-58009269 Fax: +81-3-56843989
Received: September 27, 2013
Revised: November 30, 2013
Accepted: February 16, 2014
Published online: May 28, 2014
Processing time: 243 Days and 0.5 Hours
Abstract

Aberrant expression of glycoconjugates occurs during malignant transformation of cancer cells. Overexpression of sialoglycoconjugates in particular may play an important role in the progression, i.e., invasion or metastasis, of cancer. Various types of sialoglycoconjugates have been investigated to clarify their biological significance and clinical utility in diagnosing and treating colorectal cancer. This review focuses specifically on expression of mucin (MUC) 1 and it suggests that MUC1 with the specific structure of a sialo-oligosaccharide has biological significance in determining the metastatic potential of colorectal cancer cells and clinicopathological utility in evaluating the effectiveness of treatments and the prognosis for patients with colorectal cancer. Further studies are expected to contribute to the expanded use of cancer-associated sialoglycoconjugates in cancer diagnosis and therapy.

Keywords: Sialoglycoconjugates; Sialic acid; Mucin 1; Colorectal cancer; Invasion; Metastasis

Core tip: Many types of cancer-associated sialoglycoconjugates are produced during oncogenesis or in various stages of malignant transformation. Aberrant expression of sialoglycoconjugates has been evaluated in many histochemical and molecular biological studies. An overview of the current knowledge is crucial to understand its clinicopathological utility in diagnosing and treating colorectal cancer. The biological significance of sialoglycoconjugates in the progression of cancer is also discussed. This review may contribute to expanding the use of cancer-associated sialoglycoconjugates in cancer diagnosis and therapy.