Background: This study was designed to investigate the relationship between apoptosis and Bcl-2 and Bax expressions in uterine cervical cancer after balloon-occluded arterial infusion (BOAI).
Materials and methods: Twenty-four specimens were obtained before and after BOAI. The occurrence of apoptosis was examined with molecular biochemical techniques. The expressions of Bcl-2 and Bax proteins were investigated by immunohistochemical staining.
Results: Labelling of DNA in situ indicated that apoptotic cells were sporadically seen before BOAI (6.1 +/- 1.9). Apoptotic cells apparently increased at 5 days (25.1 +/- 6.4) after BOAI The autoradiographic analysis revealed that the DNA-ladder was identified at 5 days after BOAI. Although Bcl-2 immuno-reactivity was faintly detected, the expression of Bax increased at 3 days (49.4 +/- 10.4%) after BOAI.
Conclusion: The results indicated that treatment with BOAI resulted in transient increases of apoptosis in cervical cancer in association with the increased expression of Bax.