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Endocrine Abstracts (2014) 35 P560 | DOI: 10.1530/endoabs.35.P560

ECE2014 Poster Presentations Endocrine tumours and neoplasia (99 abstracts)

Expression of FSH hormone receptors in pituitary adenomas: a marker of tumour aggressiveness?

Marek Pawlikowski 1 , Jolanta Kunert-Radek 2 , Maria Jaranowska 3 , Maciej Radek 4 , Jacek Swietoslawski 3 & Katarzyna Winczyk 3


1Department of Immunoendocrinology, Medical University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland; 2First Chair of Endocrinology, Department of Clinical Endocrinology, Medical University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland; 3Chair of Laboratory Medicine, Department of Neuroendocrinology, Medical University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland; 4Department of Neurosurgery and Surgery of Peripheral Nerves, Medical University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland.


Background: In our earlier study we found that pituitary adenomas, like other human tumours, express ectopically follicle stimulating hormone receptors FSH in intratumoral blood vessels endothelia and/or tumoral cells. The aim of the present paper is to provide the more detailed data on FSHR expression in different subtypes of pituitary adenomas and to evaluate its possible role as a prognostic and/or predictive biomarker in these tumours.

Material and methods: Forty-two pituitary adenomas, surgically removed, were immunostained with antibodies against the pituitary hormones, antigen Ki–67 and 1–190 fragment of FSHR.

Results: The positive immunostaining was found in blood vessels endothelia of 88% of adenomas and in tumoral cells of 40% adenomas. In tumoral cells, the incidence of at least moderate FSHR immunostaining is significantly higher in invasive tumours (68%) in comparison with non-invasive (12%) ones and higher (Albeit not statistically significant) in invasive-proliferating adenomas (Ki67>3%, grade 2b) in comparison with invasive but non-proliferating (Ki67<3%, grade 2a) ones.

Conclusions: The present study confirms that pituitary adenomas ectopically express FSHR in intratumoral blood vessels endothelia and tumoral cells. Moreover, the expression in tumoral cells is prevalent in invasive and proliferating adenomas vs non-invasive and non-proliferating tumours.

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