Abstract: Objective To investigate the expression ofp-Stat3,p-Akt and p-ERK1/2 in benign and malignant epidermal tumors.Methods Immunohistochemistry SP method was used to detect the expression of p-Stat3,p-Akt and p-ERK1/2 in specimens from 20 cases of seborrheic keratosis(SK),20 cases of actinic keratosis(AK),20 cases of bowenoid papulosis(BP),20 cases of basal cell carcinoma(BCC),20 cases of Bowen's disease(BD)and 50 cases of squamous cell carcinoma(SCC).Results The expression rates of p-Stat3,p-Akt and p-ERK1/2 were significantly higher in malignant epidermal tumors than those in benign epidermal tumors(all P<0.05).In malignant tumors,the expression rates of p-Stat3 and p-Akt were in decreasing order in SCC,BD and BCC,while the expression of p-ERK1/2 was of no significant difference(P>0.05).There was a positive correlation between the expression of p-Stat3 and p-Akt(P<0.05),but the expression of p-ERK1/2 did not correlate with that of p-Stat3 and p-Akt(both P>0.05). Conclusion p-Stat3,p-Akt and p-ERK1/2 may take part in the pathogenesis of malignant epidermal tumors.

Key words: STAT3 transcription factor, Protein-serine-threonine kinases, Mitogen-activated protein kinase 1, Benign and malignant tumors of epidermis