Arginase Activity in Blood and Breast Tissue of Breast Cancer Patients at Selected Hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Yohannes, Meron (2015) Arginase Activity in Blood and Breast Tissue of Breast Cancer Patients at Selected Hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Masters thesis, Addis Ababa University.

[img] PDF (Arginase Activity in Blood and Breast Tissue of Breast Cancer Patients at Selected Hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia)
Meron Yohannes's Thesis.pdf - Accepted Version
Restricted to Repository staff only

Download (1MB) | Request a copy

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer and the second cause of cancer death after lung cancer in women. The combination of its high incidence and relatively good prognosis make breast cancer the most prevalent cancer in the world today. Worldwide, it is estimated that more than one million women are diagnosed with breast cancer every year, and more than 410,000 will die from the disease, representing 14% of female cancer deaths. Moreover, breast cancer incidence rates have been reported to be increasing by up to 5% per year in many populations in developing countries. The pattern of enzymatic alterations may have an intimate correlation with the malignant state and the progression of cancerous cells in the tumor. Cancer cells may differ from their normal counterparts in the activities or concentration of certain enzymes, including arginase. It is hypothesized that rapid tumor cell proliferation and immune suppression associated with tumors is partly attributed to the enzyme arginase. So, the present study was aimed at determining arginase activity in blood and biopsy sample of breast cancer patients referred to St Paul’s hospital Millennium Medical College, Zewditu Memorial Hospital, Minilik Hospital and National Hospital from April to October 2014. A comparative cross sectional study was conducted and convenient sampling technique was employed to include all patients who were presented with breast CA and underwent major breast surgery within the study period. The result indicated the median preoperative arginase activity in plasma and PBMC from women with breast cancer was 72.62 and 729.1 mU/mg protein respectively. It has also shown that the pattern of arginase activity in breast cancer patients was significantly different from apparently healthy people. Elevated enzyme activity was also demonstrated in tumor microenvironment with median activity of 3119mU/mg. The enzyme level was also found to be correlated with tumor stage. The more advanced the breast cancer, the more aggressive the tumor is and the higher the serum and PBMC level of arginase enzyme activity suggesting its role in tumor progression. In conclusion, Arginase might be the potential candidate to be used as a biological marker for breast cancer diagnosis, prognosis and disease progression combined with other parameters. It might also be the possible target for future therapeutic approaches intended to treat cancers tough intensive research is required.

Item Type: Thesis (Masters)
Subjects: Q Science > QR Microbiology
Q Science > QR Microbiology > QR180 Immunology
R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine
Divisions: Africana
Depositing User: Emmanuel Ndorimana
Date Deposited: 01 Nov 2018 09:05
Last Modified: 01 Nov 2018 09:05
URI: http://thesisbank.jhia.ac.ke/id/eprint/7238

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item