Immunoexpression of transcription factors in urothelial bladder carcinomas.

Transcription factors play a central role in the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), which is one of the biomolecular mechanisms involved in the progression of urothelial carcinomas of the bladder (UCB). In this study, we analyzed the immunoexpression of Twist 1, Snail, Slug and β-catenin in relation to histopathological prognostic parameters of UCB. The obtained results indicated the association of Snail and β-catenin expression with low grade and early stage of UCB, as well as the association of Twist 1 and Slug expression with high grade and advanced stage lesions. The specific or sequential action of transcription factors in the bladder tumoral EMT may be useful for identifying the aggressive lesions.