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Numerous esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patients exhibit tumor recurrence following radical resection. Invasion and metastasis are key factors in poor prognosis following esophagectomy. In the present study, two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry were used to define patterns of protein expression in ESCC tissues at different pathological stages. The expression levels of identified proteins were determined by immunohistochemistry and western blotting. A total of fifteen protein spots with >2-fold differences were observed when comparing results of 2-DE for stage III and stage I ESCC tissue sample. A total of 12 proteins were identified by mass spectrometry analysis and database searches. The results of immunohistochemistry and western blotting demonstrated expression levels of tropomyosin 3 (TPM3) were higher in stage III ESCC tissue compared with stage I (P<0.05). The findings of the present study identified twelve proteins, which are closely associated with ESCC invasion and metastasis, apoptosis and cell signal transduction. Furthermore, the overexpression of TPM3 may be important in ESCC invasion and metastasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]