Expression of Metallothionein and p53 Antigens are Correlated in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Background: Metallothionein and p53 proteins have been associated with tumoral evolution and resistance against therapy. Experimentally, the former may modulate the activity of tumor suppressor protein through zinc exchange. However, there is no information on the relationship of these proteins in oral cancer. Patients and Methods: Immunohistochemical detection of metallothionein and p53 antigens was performed in 100 oral squamous cell carcinomas. Results were compared to evaluate possible relationships between them and the disease-specific survival. Results: Mean cellular indexes of positivity were 66.5% and 52.5% for metallothionein and p53, respectively, and a positive correlation was found between them. Frequent nuclear metallothionein immunolocalization was associated to increased p53 expression. Concomitant overexpression of both antigens predicted shorter survival for patients with advanced disease. Conclusion: These results corroborate the speculated association between metallothionein and p53 and suggest that simultaneous assessment of these proteins may be useful to evaluate aggressiveness of oral cancer. Oral cancer figures among the prevalent malignant diseases in countries such as United States, India, Brazil and France (1). Advanced lesions are common but not easily surgically resectable resulting in frequent use of radio and chemotherapy (2). However, tumoral resistance makes such therapy ineffective in many cases. Thus, the study of molecular markers for patient selection to these therapeutic