Differential lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase 1 (LPCAT1) expression confers aggressiveness and independently predicts recurrence in bladder urothelial carcinomas.

Bladder urothelial carcinomas are diverse in terms of biological behavior and this reflects the underlying complex metabolic and molecular pathways. Novel biomarkers that could assist in the management and outcome prediction of bladder urothelial carcinomas are eagerly needed. Recently, overexpression of lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase 1 (LPCAT1), a key enzyme in lipid metabolism, has been implicated in the evolvement of several tumors. In this study, LPCAT1 immunohistochemical expression was evaluated and statistically analyzed in 60 bladder urothelial carcinomas in relation to other clinicopathological parameters including the patient outcome. Twenty non-neoplastic bladder tissues served as a control group. Cases were followed up for a mean period of 9 months. LPCAT1 was expressed in all bladder urothelial carcinoma cases with two distinct patterns designated as high and low nuclear expression. Low LPCAT1 nuclear expression was detected in urothelial carcinoma cases as compared to the control group. Similarly, low nuclear expression of LPCAT1 was associated with high grade and invasive tumors and could independently predict tumor recurrence and short survival. In conclusion, LPCAT1 downregulation might be involved in bladder urothelial carcinoma tumorigenesis and could contribute to tumor aggressive phenotype. Retained LPCAT1 expression is an independent predictor of tumor recurrence and it represents a promising prognostic marker for patients' risk stratification.