Nuclear MTA1 overexpression is associated with aggressive prostate cancer, recurrence and metastasis in African Americans

Metastasis-associated protein 1 (MTA1), a negative epigenetic modifier, plays a critical role in prostate cancer (PCa) progression. We hypothesized that MTA1 overexpression in primary tumor tissues can predict PCa aggressiveness and metastasis. Immunohistochemical staining of MTA1 was done on archival PCa specimens from University of Mississippi Medical Center and University of Iowa. We found that nuclear MTA1 overexpression was positively correlated with the severity of disease progression reaching its highest levels in metastatic PCa. Nuclear MTA1 overexpression was significantly associated with Gleason > 7 tumors in African Americans but not in Caucasians. It was also a predictor of recurrent disease. We concluded that MTA1 nuclear overexpression may be a prognostic indicator and a future therapeutic target for aggressive PCa in African American men. Our findings may be useful for categorizing African American patients with a higher probability of recurrent disease and metastasis from those who are likely to remain metastasis-free.