Cyclooxygenase-1 and -2 in human testicular tumours.

In this study, we investigated the expression of cyclooxygenase (COX)-1 and -2 in human testicular cancer (TC) and normal testis (NT) tissues, as well as the effects of COX ligands on viability and proliferation. Tumour specimens were obtained from 72 patients with TC and 20 patients with NT. RT-PCR and immunohistochemical methods were used to determine COX expression. While COX expression was not noted in any of the NT tissues, a marked expression was observed in the TC samples. The extent and intensity of immunoreactive COX-1 and -2 polypeptides in the TC tissues was statistically greater than the expression in the NT tissues. The synthetic COX inhibitors inhibited the growth of the TC cells. Both COX-1 and COX-2 are induced in testicular cancer, and these results indicate that both COX-1 and COX-2 are essential for the growth of TC cells.