Abstract：Objective To investigate the expression of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 4(MKK4)in primary hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) and its clinical significance.Methods Immunohistochemical staining was used to examine the expression of MKK4 in HCC(n=45),adjacent normal tissues(n=45),and normal liver tissues(n=20).The relationship between MKK4 expression and clinicopathological parameters was analyzed.Results Positive rate of MKK4 protein in HCC tissue(75.6%) was significantly lower than that in adjacent normal tissues(100.0%) and normal liver tissues(100.0%)(P<0.05).Furthermore,MKK4 expression in carcinoma tissues was correlated with the metastasis,differentiation and clinical stage(P<0.05),but was not related to the age,gender,tumor volume and HBsAg(P>0.05).Conclusion MKK4 may play an important role in the progression and metastasis of HCC,and can serve as a valuable marker for evaluating metastasis of HCC.
2012, Vol. 52 
