mRNA expression pattern of DLGAP5 in HCC specimens.

<p>(A) Representative results of the semi-quantitative RT-PCR analysis of DLGAP5 in 20 pairs of HCC (C) and adjacent non-cancerous liver tissues (N). β-Actin was used as an internal control. Each PCR was performed for 35 cycles, and the PCR products were visualized by electrophoresis on 2% agarose gels. (B) Real-time RT-PCR analysis of DLGAP5 in 220 paired HCC and adjacent non-cancerous liver tissues. For each sample, the relative mRNA level of DLGAP5 was normalized to the level of β-actin. The line within each box represents the median –ΔCt value; the upper and lower edges of each box represent the 75th and 25th percentile, respectively; the upper and lower bars indicate the highest and lowest values determined, respectively. (C) The distribution of the DLGAP5 and AFP expression levels in the 220 HCC specimens. The numbers indicate the percentages of DLGAP5- and/or AFP-positive HCC specimens, as detected by real-time RT-PCR. (D)/(E) Disease-free survival rate (D) and Overall survival rate (E) of patients with HCC. High expression of DLGAP5 mRNA was significantly associated with worse prognosis (<i>P</i>=0.010). DLGAP5 high: 2^−ΔΔCT>1 (or –ΔΔCT>0); DLGAP5 low: 2^−ΔΔCT≤1 (or −ΔΔCT≤0).