Abstract
Over-expression of folate receptor alpha on cancer cells has been frequently exploited for delivery of folate-targeted imaging and therapeutic agents to tumors. Because limited information exists on expression of the beta isoform of the folate receptor in human cancers (FR-β), we have evaluated the immunohistochemical staining pattern of FR-β in 992 tumor sections from 20 different human cancer types using a new anti-human FR-β monoclonal antibody. FR-β expression was shown to be more pronounced in cells within the stroma, primarily macrophages and macrophagelike cells than cancer cells in every cancer type studied. Moreover, FR-β expression in both cancer and stromal cells was found to be statistically more prominent in females than males. A significant positive correlation was also observed between FR-β expression on stromal cells and both the stage of the cancer and the presence of lymph node metastases. Based on these data we conclude FR-β may constitute a good target for specific delivery of therapeutic agents to activated macrophages and that accumulation of FR-β positive macrophages in the stroma could serve as a useful indicator of a tumor's metastatic potential.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 14700-14709 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Oncotarget |
| Volume | 6 |
| Issue number | 16 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2015 |
Keywords
- Activated macrophage
- Folate receptor
- Folate receptor beta
- Tumor associated macrophage
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Oncology