Cavin-2 is a specific marker for detection of well-differentiated liposarcoma

Caveolae are cholesterol enriched invaginations of the plasma membrane involved in a variety of processes,including glucose and fatty acids absorption, cell transduction and mechanoprotection. Thebiogenesis and function of caveolae depend on the activity of Caveolin (Cav-1, -2 and -3) and Cavin(Cavin-1, -2, -3 and -4) protein families. Since the membrane Cavin-2 protein was reported to play a keyrole in caveolae formation of adipocytes, in this work we have used a multidisciplinary approach toinvestigate its expression in liposarcoma (LPS), an adipocytic soft tissue sarcoma affecting adults. Dataobtained through an in silico and immunohistochemical analysis suggest that Cavin-2, along with Cavin-1, Cav-1 and Cav-2, is mostly expressed in the least aggressive LPS subtype, namely well-differentiatedLPS, while is almost undetectable in the more aggressive myxoid, pleomorphic and dedifferentiatedLPS tumors. Accordingly, in vitro analysis confirmed that Cavin-2 expression increases in LPS tumor celllines during differentiation as compared to proliferation, as detected by immunoblotting and immunofluorescenceanalysis. Overall, these data suggest that Cavin-2 represents a useful marker for discriminatingthe degree of differentiation in LPS tumors.