Objective: To study the expression of cyclin dependent kinase 4(CDK4) protein in oral carcinogenesis.
Methods: An LSAB immunohistochemistry method was applied to 80 cases of paraffine-fixed tissues to study the expression and distribution of CDK4 in normal oral mucosa, oral premalignant lesion (OPL) and oral squamous cell carcinoma.
Results: The overexpression of CDK4 protein was observed in the progression of OPL. Meanwhile, a correlation analysis was applied to investigate the relationship between P16 and CDK4 expression, and the result showed that the coefficient of correlation was 0.813, which was statistically significant.
Conclusion: The overexpression of CDK4 is involved in the progression of OPL, and there is a positive feedback loop between CDK4 and P16.