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Figure 4 | Cilia

Figure 4

From: Loss of primary cilia occurs early in breast cancer development

Figure 4

Cilia length abnormalities associated with breast cancer and their stromal cells. (A) Images of cilia representing typical lengths on basal epithelial cell in normal breast reduction mammoplasties, on invasive cancer cells, on stromal cells associated with normal breast reduction mammoplasties, and stromal cells associated with invasive cancers. (B, C) Boxplot represents median length of cilia expressed on cells in the following breast tissue types: basal epithelial cells of normal breast reduction mammoplasties (RM Basal, n = 12), luminal epithelial cells of normal breast reduction mammoplasties (RM Luminal, n = 12), basal cells in histologically normal epithelium adjacent to cancer (HNE Basal, n = 15), luminal cells in histologically normal epithelium adjacent to cancer (HNE Basal, n = 15), cancer cells in carcinoma in situ lesions grades 1 and 2 combined (CIS 1&2, n = 23), cancer cells in carcinoma in situ grade 3 (CIS3, n = 16), cancer cells in invasive cancers grades 1 and 2 combined (INV 1&2, n = 40), cancer cells in invasive cancer grade 3 (INV3, n = 25). (D) Boxplot represents the median length of cilia on stromal cells in the following breast tissue types: normal breast reduction mammoplasties (RM, n = 12), histologically normal epithelium adjacent to cancer (HNE, n = 15), carcinoma in situ lesions grades 1 and 2 combined (CIS 1&2, n = 23), carcinoma in situ grade 3 (CIS3, n = 16), invasive cancers grades 1 and 2 combined (INV 1&2, n = 40), invasive cancer grade 3 (INV3, n = 25). (B-D) The bar graph represents the percent of patients that have an abnormally low percentage of ciliated cells (blue bars: quartile 1 (Q1), less than or equal to the 75th percentile for normal tissue) or an abnormally high percentage of ciliated cells (orange bars: quartile 4 (Q4), greater than or equal to the 25th percentile for normal tissue). (** = P <0.01) was determined by performing logistic regression compared to normal RM.

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