Observational Study
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World J Gastroenterol. Dec 14, 2014; 20(46): 17541-17551
Published online Dec 14, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i46.17541
Significance of downregulation of liver fatty acid-binding protein in hepatocellular carcinoma
Masafumi Inoue, Yoshihisa Takahashi, Takeshi Fujii, Masanobu Kitagawa, Toshio Fukusato
Masafumi Inoue, Takeshi Fujii, Department of Pathology, Toranomon Hospital, Tokyo 105-8470, Japan
Yoshihisa Takahashi, Toshio Fukusato, Department of Pathology, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Tokyo 173-8605, Japan
Masanobu Kitagawa, Department of Comprehensive Pathology, Graduate School, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo 113-8519, Japan
Author contributions: Fukusato T, Takahashi Y, Fujii T and Kitagawa M designed the study; Inoue M and Fukusato T reviewed the histological slides; Inoue M analyzed the data. Inoue M and Takahashi Y wrote the manuscript; Fukusato T and Takahashi Y checked and revised the manuscript.
Correspondence to: Yoshihisa Takahashi, MD, Department of Pathology, Teikyo University School of Medicine, 2-11-1 Kaga, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8605, Japan. ytakaha-tky@umin.ac.jp
Telephone: +81-3-39641211 Fax: +81-3-39649622
Received: December 12, 2013
Revised: March 27, 2014
Accepted: June 2, 2014
Published online: December 14, 2014
Processing time: 371 Days and 0.3 Hours
Core Tip

Core tip: The significance of the downregulation of liver fatty acid-binding protein (L-FABP) expression in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is largely unknown. In the present study, we performed immunohistochemical staining for L-FABP in 146 cases of HCC. We found that, in smaller HCC, L-FABP downregulation occurs, probably because of phenotypic changes during tumor progression. Moreover, L-FABP downregulation correlated with tumor differentiation and intratumor inflammation.