The involvement of
peptidases in carcinogenetic processes of several
tumor types has been researched in recent years. Although kidney is one of the major tissues known to express
cystinyl-aminopeptidase (CAP), little is known about its role in renal
neoplasia. This study analyzes fluorimetrically membrane-bound and soluble CAP activity in the three main
renal cancers: clear cell (CCRCC), papillary (PRCC), and chromophobe (ChRCC)
renal cell carcinomas. Overall, a marked decrease of membrane-bound CAP activity in all the three
renal cell carcinomas was detected when compared with their respective surrounding non-
tumor tissues. So, the
tumor vs. non-
tumor CAP ratios (units of
peptidase per mg of
protein) was as follows: 926+/-111 vs. 3778+/-276 for CCRCCs, 737+/-181 vs. 4351+/-950 for PRCCs, and 592+/-118 vs. 4905+/-935 for ChRCCs. In contrast, the soluble fraction of this
enzyme displayed minor and non-significant changes when comparing
tumor and non-
tumor CAP activities in the whole series. After stratification by stage and grade, CCRCCs displayed significant differences: pT3 category had significantly higher levels of membrane-bound activity than pT1, and high grade cases (G3-4) had higher soluble CAP activity than low grade ones (G1-2). These data may open additional possibilities in the study of
renal cell carcinoma with regard to the prognosis of patients.