Abnormal Expression of Fibrinogen Gamma (FGG) and Plasma Level of Fibrinogen in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Abnormal expression of genes has been related to progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The present study investigated the mRNA expression of fibrinogen gamma (FGG) in HCC and levels of plasma fibrinogen of patients with HCC. Materials and Methods: Northern blot and semiquantitative RT-PCR were performed to determine the mRNA transcription of FGG. The plasma fibrinogen was measured quantitatively by the von Clauss method. Results: FGG was significantly up-regulated at the mRNA level in the SMMC-7721 and HepG2 HCC cell lines. FGG mRNA transcript was also up-regulated in HCC tissues when compared to non-cancerous adjacent tissues as control. The laboratory investigation of blood samples from 114 HCC patients showed significantly higher levels of plasma fibrinogen compared to healthy persons as control (3.75+/-1.41 vs. 2.90+/-0.46 g l(-1)) (p<0.01). Moreover, plasma fibrinogen increased progressively with the tumor clinical stage of HCC patients. By multivariate logistic regression analysis, a positive level of plasma fibrinogen was found to have a significant correlation with the presence of tumor thrombosis. Conclusion: FGG mRNA was expressed abnormally in HCC and elevated plasma fibrinogen may serve as a useful predictor of clinical progression of HCC patients.