Objective      To determine the expression of homeobox 10 (HOXA10) in lung adenocarcinoma and lung adenocarcinoma cell lines and to observe its clinical significance in lung adenocarcinoma.       Methods      Immunohistochemical staining was applied to detect the HOXA10 expression in lung tissue samples from 75 cases of lung adenocarcinoma and corresponding normal lung tissues. The correlation between the expression and the clinical feature or 5-year survival rate in these patients was analyzed. RT-PCR

Western blot analysis and immunofluorescence assay were used to detect the expression of HOXA10 in H322

H1650 A549 and H1975 lung adenocarcinoma cell lines and HBE human bronchial epithelial cell line.       Results      In 75 cases of lung adenocarcinoma

the expression of HOXA10

which was in the cytoplasm

was significantly higher than that in normal lung tissues (P0.01)

and the high expression of HOXA10 was correlated with tumor invasion (P0.05) and lymphatic metastasis (P0.01)

but not with the 5-year survival rates of these patients (P0.05). In addition

the expression of HOXA10 at mRNA and protein levels was very strong in lung adenocarcinoma cell lines

and significantly higher than in human bronchial epithelial cells.       Conclusion      HOXA10 is strongly expressed in lung adenocarcinoma and lung adenocarcinoma cell lines

and may be involved in the invasion and lymphatic metastasis degrees of lung adenocarcinoma.