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Background: FoxP3 is the most dependable marker for regulatory T cells which play a major role in immune tolerance. Foxp3 gene polymorphisms were associated with various autoimmune diseases and clearance of viral infections. We studied the association of Foxp3 polymorphisms in severe RRP patients. Methods: A total of 30 Korean severe RRP patients and 195 healthy controls were enrolled. Foxp3 polymorphisms (rs5902434 del/ATT, rs3761548 C/A, rs3761549 C/T, and rs2232365 G/A) were determined by PCR and sequencing. Results: Genotype frequencies (GF) of rs5902434 ATT/ATT and rs2232365 GG were significantly decreased in female RRP patients than controls (0.0% vs 23.0%, p = 0.039, OR = 9.4 for both). Conclusions: We showed that Foxp3 polymorphism of rs5902434 and rs2232365 could be an important protective factor in the susceptibility of severe RRP in female Koreans. Further studies on larger number of patients and other ethnic groups are needed to clarify the association. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Tumour cell metastasis to regional lymph nodes is an early event in the spread of metastatic tumour. We postulated that an increased primary tumour volume (PTV) may modulate cervical nodal metastasis by altering lymphangiogenesis. Setting: We investigated 48 patients who had previously been diagnosed with cancer of the oral cavity and oropharynx. Methods: The tumour area was manually outlined from an axial magnetic resonance imaging series. The three-dimensional reconstruction software automatically calculated the PTV. Immunohistochemical staining was performed with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-C, VEGF-D, and D2-40 monoclonal antibodies on the paraffin-embedded tissues obtained from the primary tumour. Main Outcome Measures: The associations among the semiquantitative scores of the VEGF-C/D stained cancer cells, lymphatic vessel density (LVD), and PTV were investigated. Results: PTV had a significant relationship with LVD (p 5 = .037) and N+ disease (p = .024). VEGF-C expression was significantly associated with lymph node metastasis (p = .018), increased LVD (p < .001), and tumour differentiation (p 5 .015) . However, we found no significant relationship between VEGF-C expression and the PTV. Similarly, among the various clinical factors, we found that the N stage (p 5 .001) and LVD (p 5 .008) were significantly associated with VEGF-D expression. However there was no association between VEGF-D expression and the primary PTV. Conclusions: Although PTV had a significant relationship with LVD and N+ disease, we could not find any clear correlation between the expression of VEGF-C/D and the PTV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]