Oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas (OSCCs) can be either Human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive or HPV-negative. Profiles of druggable Receptor Tyrosine Kinases (RTKs) are different in both groups, as shown in a paper by Cortelazzi, B. et al. The authors chose a cohort of 17 HPV-positive and 59 HVP-negative Formalin-Fixed OSCCs, in order to study E5 expression and RTK alterations. RTK activation was explored in further 12 Frozen OSCCs.
HPV-positive and HPV-negative OSCCs showed different RTK profiles, including differences in E5 and HER2 levels, as well as in HER3 activation and heterodimerisation (HER3/EGFR, also seen for HER2/EGFR). PI3KCA mutations/expression/increased gene copy number and PTEN mutations were found in both groups, whereas PTEN gene loss was only observed in the HPV-positive cases.
The authors stated that, for HPV-positive cases, it would be interesting to study the expression of E5, which may modulate EGFR turnover and activate VEGF and PDGFRβ. They also indicate that in HPV-negative cases, HER3 may be a promising druggable biomarker that would deserve further investigation. Finally, PI3KCA and PTEN alterations encourage the promising clinical evaluation of PI3K/mTOR inhibitor activity in OSCCs, particularly in HPV-positive/PI3KCA-mutated OSCCs.
This study was possible in part thanks to an approach based on arrays to detect multiple biomarkers in biological samples at the same time, followed by validation using simplex technologies. These experimental approaches are known for cytokine profiling but also exist for phosphorylation studies (RTKs, EGFR, mTOR phospho-pathways…).
To ensure top quality in the data obtained, you might outsource your biomarker profiling and validation to fully trained, certified service providers . 
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