Quantitative analysis of centrosomes in breast cancer in correlation to DNA-ploidy and clinicopathological markers

K. Friedrich, D.Otto, M.Toma, W. Meyer, G.Baretton

Institut für Pathologie, Universitätsklinikum „Carl Gustav Carus“ Dresden

Aims: The purpose of the study was to analyse centrosome morphology in breast cancers with different DNA ploidy and clinicopathological markers.

Methods: The centrosomes of 45 invasive breast cancers were stained immunhistochemically with an antibody against gamma-tubulin (GTU-88; SIGMA) and quantitatively analysed for number, size and shape with Spectracube SD-200H (Applied Spectral Imaging). The DNA ploidy was estimated with an OPTIMAS® based image cytometry workstation. The statistical analysis was done by t-Test according to Student (p<0,05).

Results: Centrosomes were larger in non-diploid tumors than in peridiploid tumors. Centrosomes of breast cancers larger than 2 cm differed in number and shape from those of smaller breast cancers. Lymph node positive breast cancers showed larger centrosomes than lymph node negative tumors. Centrosomes in grade 1 tumors differed in their shape from centrosomes in tumors with a histopathological grade 2. Further differences in size and shape of centrosomes were detected in breast cancers with different expression status of estrogen receptor and p53.

Conclusions: The number and morphology of centrosomes in breast cancer is not only associated with DNA-ploidy, but also with different expression of clinicopathological markers. Thus, the analysis of centrosomes may contribute to improvement of prognostication in breast cancer. However, this requires the analysis of a considerably higher number of cases under standardised conditions.