Gene expression analysis of canine osteosarcoma tissue from patients with normal and increased serum alkaline phosphatase concentration. Canis lupus familiaris

Serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) concentration is a prognostic factor for osteosarcoma in multiple studies, though its biological significance remains incompletely understood. To determine whether gene expression patterns differed in osteosarcoma from patients with differing serum ALP concentrations, microarray analysis was performed on 18 primary osteosarcoma samples and six osteosarcoma cell lines from dogs with normal and increased serum ALP concentration. No differences in gene expression patterns were noted between tumors or cell lines with differing serum ALP concentration using a gene-specific two-sample t-test. Using a more sensitive empirical Bayes procedure, DCUN1D1 was increased in both the tissue and cell lines of the normal ALP group. Using QPCR, differences in DCUN1D1 expression between the two groups failed to reach significance. The homogeneity of gene expression patterns of osteosarcoma associated differing serum ALP concentrations are consistent with previous studies suggesting serum ALP concentration is not associated with intrinsic differences of osteosarcoma cells. Overall design: A total of 18 canine primary osteosarcoma tumor samples were used in this study. 9 tumor samples were from patients having a normal serum alkaline phosphatase concentration. 9 tumor samples were from patients having an increased serum alkaline phosphatase concentration. There were no reference tissues or controls used in this study.