Type I EMT Inducer Eomesodermin Has a Significant Expression in Breast Cancer

Background: epithelial-mesenchymal transition (emt) is a fundamental stage in cancer metastasis, and the presence of vascular invasion is a strong indication of the spread of the malignant tumor cells. regulation of the emt is a complex process in which several different transcription factors are involved. eomesodermin (eomes) as a member of the t-box gene family is an important component in the induction of the germ-line layer during gastrulation. however, its role in cancer is not well understood. thereby, in this project, we aimed to assess the eomes gene expression in tumor tissues and to find out its possible relevance to vascular invasion. methods: seventy-one breast cancer tumors were obtained from the tumor bank of cancer institute, imam khomeini hospital. quantitative real-time pcr (qrt-pcr) was conducted to evaluate eomes gene expression at rna level. results: results have shown that eomes has been remarkably expressed in the majority of tumor samples. high levels of eomes expression were concomitant with the presence of vascular invasion in 72% of samples. however, no significant association was found. to the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that eomes expression is reported in breast cancer tumors. conclusion: this important finding suggests that eomes has the potential to be used as a biomarker in breast cancer.