Evaluating Xenobiotic Metabolizing Enzymes, Cell Proliferation and Apoptosis Markers in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer patients

Introduction: Adequate screening methods are not available for early stage ovarian cancer detection. We hypothesised that correlating the levels of phase I and phase II biotransformation enzymes involved in estrogen metabolism and correlating it with cell proliferation and apoptosis evasion would provide key hallmark traits for ovarian malignancy. The aim of the study was to evaluate the expression levels of phase I (cytochrome P450 total and the CYP isoforms CYP1A1, CYP1A2 and CYP2B) and phase II (GST and QR) xenobioticmetabolizing enzymes, as well as expression of markers reflecting cell proliferation (PCNA and cyclin D1) and apoptosis (Bcl-2 and Bax) in patients with epithelial ovarian cancer. Material & Methods: Hundred and fifteen ovarian tumor patients were chosen for the study. Out of 115 ovarian tissues of patients, 18 were histologically non-malignant and rest were malignant with grade III epithelial ovarian tumors. Results : The results of the present study demonstrated that the increase in phase I enzymes in ovarian tumour tissues were not compensated by a corresponding increase in phase II enzymes, indicating insufficient detoxification in the face of increased carcinogenic activation. Conclusion: The present study results provided evidence that an imbalance in phase I and phase II xenobioticmetabolizing enzymes, coupled with an imbalance in cell proliferation and apoptosis, are important contributors for the development of epithelial ovarian cancer.