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Background Specificity protein 1 (Sp1) is a transcription factor and shown to be a sequence-specific DNA-binding protein that activate a broad and diverse spectrum of mammalian gene, such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) gene. But the expression of Sp1 and VEGF has not previously been investigated in extramammary Paget's disease (EMPD). Methods To investigate the expression of Sp1 and VEGF proteins in EMPD and to assess their relationships and potential contribution to malignant transduction of EMPD, paraffin-embedded EMPD specimens (35 tissue samples from 33 patients with primary EMPD, including two samples of metastatic lymph nodes from two patients) were subjected to immunohistochemical staining for Sp1 and VEGF. Results All of the 35 EMPD specimens, including all of six invasive EMPD and two metastatic lymph node specimens, showed strong nuclear positive staining for Sp1 and strong cytoplasmic positive staining for VEGF. The expression levels (% positive cells) of Sp1 and VEGF in EMPD were significantly higher than those of normal skin (NS). There was a significantly high correlation between expression levels of Sp1 and VEGF in EMPD. Conclusions The present study reveals that the concordant over-expression of Sp1 and VEGF may play a pivotal role in the tumorigenesis and further malignant transduction of EMPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The entire minichromosome maintenance (MCM) family (MCM2–7) play roles in the initiation and elongation of DNA replication. Many studies have demonstrated that MCM proteins may be better indicators of a wide variety of proliferative or cancer cells in malignant tissues. Objectives To characterize the pattern and frequency of MCM5 expression in proliferative and malignant skin diseases in comparison with those of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA). Methods Twelve normal skin specimens, 12 specimens of psoriasis, 21 specimens of bowenoid papulosis (BP), 16 specimens of Bowen's disease (BD), 38 specimens of skin squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), and 11 specimens of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) were subjected to immunohistochemical staining for MCM5 and PCNA. Results MCM5 protein was expressed in the lower layers of epidermis in psoriasis, while MCM5 protein were present throughout the tumor cells in BP, BD, and moderately/poorly differentiated SCC. MCM5 protein was preferentially expressed in the periphery of well-differentiated SCC or bigger nests of BCC, although some small nests of BCC seemingly showed diffuse staining patterns. The percentages of MCM5-positive cells were 15.7% in normal skin, 21.8% in psoriasis, 75.9% in BP, 83.8% in BD, 63.5% in well-differentiated SCC, 77.5% in moderately differentiated SCC, 79.8% in poorly differentiated SCC, and 21.2% in BCC in average. Well-differentiated SCC showed a significantly lower percentage of positive cells than did moderately differentiated SCC or poorly differentiated SCC. MCM5 staining basically show a similar staining pattern to that of PCNA, but more cells tended to be stained with MCM5 than with PCNA. Conclusions Our results demonstrate pattern and frequency of MCM5 expression in various skin diseases and suggest that MCM5 may be a useful marker to detect cell proliferation in skin tissue sections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]