Cathepsin L is A Potential Marker for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Abstract

Breast cancer is the second cancer-related death among women worldwide. Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most aggressive and lethal subtype, which is associated with high metastasis and poor prognosis. Cathepsins, a family of lysosomal cysteine proteases, such as cathepsin L (CTSL), are involved in cancer invasion and metastasis. Thus, CTSL may emerge as a marker for TNBC. So, we characterized the expression of CTSL mRNA in tissue specimen of TNBC (n = 10) and non-TNBC (non-TN) (n = 10) using quantitative real-time PCR. Data were statistically analyzed using Mann-Whitney U-test. Our data demonstrate that CTSL mRNA expression was up-regulated in TN BC vs. non-TN BC patients. In conclusion, the high expression of CTSL may represent a marker for TNBC and its targeting could have therapeutic implications