Evaluating the expression of syndecan-1 in leukoplakia and oral squamous cell carcinoma

Background: The development of malignant epithelial neoplasm is associated with the disruption of
cell to-cell and cell-to-matrix adhesion. A decrease in cell membrane syndecan-1 levels can be
observed as early as in precancerous lesions, most of which are likely to develop into invasive
cancers with time. Syndecan-1 down regulation is therefore regarded as an initial step towards
malignant transformation. Therefore the aim and objectives of this study were to evaluate the
expression of syndecan-1 in leukoplakia and oral squamous cell carcinoma and identify its role as a
reliable marker for predicting malignant changes. Also, compare syndecan-1 expression in
leukoplakia with different grades of dysplasia and in different grades of oral squamous cell
carcinoma.
Materials and Method: The expression of syndecan-1 was evaluated in total of 52 cases which
comprised of 10 cases of normal oral mucosa, 21 cases each of leukoplakia with dysplasia and oral
squamous cell carcinoma. Mann-Whiteny ‘U’ test and Tukey’s test were used for statistical analysis
and the level of significance was fixed at P < 0.05
Result: The expression of syndecan-1 decreased with increasing grades of dysplasia in leukoplakia
and with increasing histological grades in oral squamous cell carcinoma
Conclusion: syndecan-1 can be considered as a useful biomarker for assessing dysplastic changes
and as a reliable marker in predicting malignant changes. Also, it can be used as a prognostic
indicator in oral squamous cell carcinoma and as a reliable marker in predicting malignant changes.