Clinical Chemistry
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Clinical Chemistry 55: 914-922, 2009. First published March 19, 2009; 10.1373/clinchem.2008.116939
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(Clinical Chemistry. 2009;55:914-922.)
© 2009 American Association for Clinical Chemistry, Inc.

Cancer Diagnostics

Salivary Leptin as a Candidate Diagnostic Marker in Salivary Gland Tumors

Mirco Schapher1,a, Olaf Wendler1, Michael Gröschl2, Renate Schäfer1, Heinrich Iro1 and Johannes Zenk1

1 Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery and 2 Department of Pediatrics, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Erlangen, Germany.

aAddress correspondence to this author at: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany, Waldstraβe 1, 91054 Erlangen, Germany. Fax 0049-(0)9131-85 34 778; e-mail mirco.schapher{at}med.stud.uni-erlangen.de.

Background: Since the discovery of autonomous leptin production in salivary glands, very few studies have reported on the physiological or pathological meaning of this particular cytokine in saliva. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of leptin and its receptors Ob-Ra and Ob-Rb in parotid salivary gland tumors, with particular regard to a potential use of leptin as a tumor marker.

Methods: Parotid tissue samples from healthy individuals (n = 31) and tumor patients (n = 97, including tissue samples from pleomorphic adenomas, adenolymphomas, basal cell adenomas, and diverse carcinomas) were analyzed by use of ApoTome-technique microscopy, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, immunoblotting, and quantitative real-time PCR. Salivary and plasma leptin concentrations were measured by using ELISA. Ultrasound was used to determine tumor size before surgery.

Results: In all salivary gland tumors leptin was expressed in much higher amounts than in healthy parotid tissues. The cytokine was not imported from the blood but actively produced by the tumors. Immunoblotting results indicated that leptin was present as oligomers in salivary glands. Furthermore, the examined tumors overexpressed the receptor isoforms Ob-Ra and Ob-Rb. Measured leptin concentrations in mixed saliva samples were significantly increased in patients with parotid tumors [mean (SD) 673 (484) pg/mL in pleomorphic adenomas, 679 (465) pg/mL in adenolymphomas, and 880 (618) pg/mL in carcinomas] vs controls [125 (36) pg/mL] (P < 0.001).

Conclusions: This is the first study to show that the analysis of salivary leptin in mixed saliva samples may allow preoperative differentiation between tumor patients and healthy individuals.






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Copyright © 2009 by the American Association for Clinical Chemistry.