Reactivity to Fucose-Binding Proteins of Lotus Tetragonolobus Correlates with Metastatic Phenotype of Transitional Cell Carcinoma of the Bladder

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Abstract
Expression of binding sites for fucose binding proteins (FBP) of Lotus tetragonolobus were immunohistochemically analyzed in surgically extirpated specimens from patients with transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder. The degree of expression of FBP binding sites in the primary cancerous region correlated with the occurrence of lymph node metastasis. Thus, lymph node metastases occurred in 15 of 34 cases with high expression of FBP binding sites, but did not in 17 cases with low or no FBP binding site expression. All metastatic lymph nodes strongly reacted with FBP. In addition, primary lesions at the pT3b or pT4 stage more frequently reacted with FBP as compared with those at the pTa, pT1 or pT2 stage. Although FBP is known to react both with Gal beta 1----4(Fuc alpha 1----3)GlcNAc and Fuc alpha 1----2Gal sequences, comparative staining of other carbohydrate markers revealed that the latter structure is not related with metastatic potential and stages.