Abstract:Objective：To investigate the gene expression of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) and its biological significance in liver cancer tissue. Methods：The samples from hepatic cancer tissue and corresponding adjacent tissues were collected in thirty-two patients with primary liver cancer. The mRNA and protein levels of NF-κB were determined by reverse-transcription PCR and Western bolt, respectively. Immunochemistry was employed to determine the localization of NF-κB protein in liver tissues. Results：As shown by RT-PCR and Western blot, both mRNA and protein expressions of NF-κB in liver cancer tissues were significantly higher than those in corresponding adjacent liver tissues(P<0.05). In liver cancer tissues, NF-κB was shown to be expressed in both cellular nucleus and cytosol, whereas its expression was only detected in cellular cytosol of tissues adhacent to cancer. The difference of the intracellular localization of NF-κB between liver cancer and tissues adjacent to cancer implies that NF-κB is activated in liver cancer tissue. Conclusions：NF-κB gene is significantly overexpressed and activated in liver cancer tissue. The different location of NF-κB gene in cancer cell and adjacent liver cell may suggest that after NF-κB actived and entered to nucleus, which may consequently modulate transcription of some related downstream-gene, and promote the initiation and development of liver cancer.