CSF-1 and Other Cytokines in Human Endometrial Carcinogenesis

The purposes of this study are the following:

1. To further characterize and quantify both CSF-1 and colony-stimulating factor-1 receptor (CSF-1R) expression from additional tumor specimens, specifically, tumors of high grade and from metastatic sites.
2. To assay using Enzyme-Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay (ELISA) sandwich monoclonal antibody methodology, CSF-1 expression in the peritoneal fluid and blood from patients with endometrial adenocarcinomas.
3. Using immunohistochemistry, to evaluate the presence of staining for CSF-1 and CSF-1R from additional patients with endometrial adenocarcinomas, especially of high grades and from metastatic sites.
4. To determine the extent of cytokine, specifically CSF-1, but also interleukin-1 (IL-1), IL-6, and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), production, in endometrial carcinoma cells in primary cell culture.
5. To determine the responsiveness of epithelial cells on estrogen and antiestrogen binding, to determine if CSF-1 production is mediated, in these cells, by estrogen receptor binding, or alternative pathways of intracellular/cell-cell signal transduction.
6. The ultimate objective of these experiments is to characterize CSF-1 expression from benign and tumor cells in order to identify steps in the CSF-1 activated signalling pathways that may represent potential targets for therapy.