Identifying Candidate Biomarkers for Pleomorphic Adenoma: A Case–Control Study

Pleomorphic adenoma (PA) is the most common benign salivary gland tumor. Kallikrein-related peptidases have been identified as biomarkers in many human tumors and may influence tumor behavior. We investigated KLK1 − 15 messenger ribonucleic acid and proteins in PA specimens to determine a KLK expression profile for this tumor. Fresh frozen PA tissue specimens ( n = 26) and matched controls were subjected to quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction to detect KLK1 − 15 mRNA. Expression of KLK1, KLK12, KLK13, and KLK8 proteins were then evaluated via immunostaining techniques. Statistical analyses were performed with the level of significance set at P