The Oncofetal Protein IMP3: A Novel Grading Tool and Predictor of Poor Clinical Outcome in Human Gliomas

• Main Authors: Alessandro Del Gobbo, Valentina Vaira, Lucia Ferrari, Carlo Patriarca, Andrea Di Cristofori, Dario Ricca, Manuela Caroli, Paolo Rampini, Silvano Bosari, Stefano Ferrero
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hindawi Limited 2015-01-01
• Series: BioMed Research International
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/413897
• ISSN: 2314-6133; 2314-6141

Morphologic criteria illustrated in WHO guidelines are the most significant prognostic factor in human gliomas, but novel biomarkers are needed to identify patients with a poorer outcome. The present study examined the expression of the oncofetal protein IMP3 in a series of 135 patients affected by high-grade (grade III and IV) gliomas, correlating the results with proliferative activity, molecular parameters, and clinical and follow-up data. Overall, IMP3 expression was higher in glioblastomas (68%) than in grade III tumors (20%, P<0.0001), and IMP3-positive high-grade gliomas showed a shorter overall and disease-free survival than negative ones (P=0.0002 and P=0.006, resp.). IMP3 expression was significantly associated with the absence of mutations of IDH1 gene (P=0.0001) and with the unmethylated phenotype of MGMT in high-grade gliomas (P=0.004). High Ki67 levels were correlated with better prognosis in glioblastomas but IMP3 expression was not correlated with the proliferation index. These findings confirm the role of IMP3 as a marker of poor outcome, also in consideration of its association with IDH1 wild-type phenotype and MGMT unmethylated status. The data suggest that IMP3 staining could identify a subgroup of patients with poor prognosis and at risk of recurrence in high-grade gliomas.