Expression of autophagy-related proteins ULK1, Raptor and Rictor in different cervical tissues and its clinical significance

Objective To investigate the expression of serine/threonine protein kinase ULK1, Raptor, and Rictor protein in different cervical tissues and explore its significance. Methods A total of 95 patients with cervical cancer, 30 patients with high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL), 30 patients with low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (LSIL) and 30 patients with chronic cervicitis were selected. The expression of ULK1, Raptor, and Rictor in cervical tissue was detected by immunohistochemistry. The relationship between these three indicators and the clinicopathological features of cervical cancer was analyzed. Results The expression of ULK1, Raptor and Rictor in different cervical tissues were statistically different(P<0.05).ULK1 was negatively related with the expression of Raptor and Rictor in cervical cancer tissues (r=-0.640 and -0.687, P<0.05). The expression of ULK1, Raptor, and Rictor was related with the degree of tissue differentiation, FIGO stage, and tissue type (P＜0.05). Patients with negative ULK1 expression showed shorter overall survival than those with positive expression, while patient with positive Raptor and Rictor expression showed shorter overall survival than those with negative expression (P＜0.05). FIGO stage, tissue type, degree of tissue differentiation and positive expression of ULK1, Raptor and Rictor were the factors influencing the prognosis of patients with cervical cancer (P＜0.05). The degree of tissue differentiation, lymph node metastasis and Rictor were risk factors for cervical cancer prognosis, while ULK1 was an independent protective factor for the prognosis of cervical cancer (P＜0.05). Conclusions The expression of ULK1, Raptor, and Rictor are associated with the occurrence, progression and prognosis of different cervical lesions and can be used as effective predictors of cervical lesion progression and prognosis.