gms | German Medical Science

Introduction: Meningiomas are among the most common primary intracranial neoplasms. Their classification follows WHO grading schemes, containing three grades from benign to malignant. Overexpression of Cyclin D1 has been reported in a variety of malignancies and VEGF plays an important role in tumor angiogenesis. Although both are generally associated with poorer prognosis and higher tumor grade, little is known about their expression in meningioma.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the expression of Cyclin D1 and VEGF in meningioma correlated to the tumor grade.

Materials and methods: 112 samples of meningiomas (WHO I 67, WHO II 34, WHO III 11) were investigated. mRNA of Cyclin D1 and VEGF was transcribed into cDNA and quantified by real time PCR. Furthermore, immunohistochemistry (IHC) was performed for Cyclin D1 and VEGF and quantified as Immuno Reactive Score (IRS).

Results: Results of qRT-PCR and immunohistochemistry were consistent and revealed different expression patterns among the WHO grades. Positive correlation of Cyclin D1 expression and tumor grade was observed on both mRNA and protein level (IHC p<0.05, qRT-PCR p<0.01). Expression of VEGF showed no significant correlation with tumor grade.

Conclusions: As our data regarding VEGF expression showed no significant correlation, we suggest that VEGF might rather be associated with microvasculature and peritumoral edema than tumor grade in meningioma. In contrast, the results concerning Cyclin D1 show that high Cyclin D1 expression correlates with higher tumor grade, identifying Cyclin D1 as a prognostic marker and potential therapeutic target.