Expression of BMP2, LTBP4 and derl1 as a differential diagnosis between benign and malignant breast neoplasms of female dogs

• Grant number: 21/10051-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: December 01, 2021
• End date: November 30, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Pathology
• Principal Investigator: Renee Laufer Amorim
• Grantee: Ingrid Oliveira Silva
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Breast neoplasms are the most frequent in non-sterilized female dogs and, in these cases, they represent about 50 to 70% of all neoplasms. Diagnosis is often late, sometimes presenting aggressive behavior and metastases, in addition to short survival. Due to the need to classify benign and malignant neoplasms, in those cases where the histopathological diagnosis requires auxiliary methods, Klopfleisch et al. (2010) confirmed through laser microdissected frozen samples that the combined expression pattern of BMP2, LTBP4, and DERL1 can properly classify such tumors. Their results showed that BMP2 and DERL1 were upregulated, while LTBP4 was downregulated in those classified as malignant. Thus, research into the applicability of routine techniques in canine mammary tumor samples to verify the ability to quantify the expression of these genes is justified, as it would enable the classification, staging, and adoption of therapeutic measures for this kind of tumor, as well as serving as a substrate to comparative oncology research and by-product development. This study aims to standardize and determine the expression levels of BMP2, DERL1, and LTBP4 genes from samples, extracted from paraffin blocks, of canine mammary tumors, from our research archive, from animals that the complete follow up is available, by qRT-PCR method to differentiate tumor behavior. After identification and quantification, the expression levels obtained will be compared between normal, benign, and malignant neoplastic breast tissues. This is the first step for the development of a product to be used as a diagnostic method, and with subsequent application in cytological samples.(AU)