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[Genes, heredity and colorectal cancer].

All cancers result from the accumulation of mutations of proto-oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes. Sporadic and familial colorectal cancers result from the accumulation of the following genes, in a relatively stereotyped chronological order: the tumor suppressor gene apc whose mutations are responsible for the familial adenomatous polyposis; the proto-oncogene K-ras which is mutated in 50% of large adenomas (> 1 cm) and adenocarcinomas; the tumor suppressor gene dcc; and the tumor suppressor gene p53 whose inactivation in a factor of bad prognosis. While some of them are induced by mutagens, others result from an instability of the genome. Two types of instability are observed in both sporadic and familial colorectal cancer. The first type, which is found in 25-50% of cases, appears as cytogenetic abnormalities with aneuploidy and allelic losses. The second type of instability is induced by mutations of the hMSH2 or hMLH1 genes which code for proteins involved in the mechanism of DNA repair.

Chromosome Deletion↗

PTEN gene mutations in colorectal cancers displaying microsatellite instability.

To determine the relationship between the mutation of the PTEN gene and genomic instability in human colorectal cancer, we screened the PTEN gene in 32 colorectal cancers (eight cell lines and 24 tissues) displaying microsatellite instability (MSI) and 32 colorectal cancers (six cell lines and 26 tissues) displaying microsatellite stability (MSS). Of 64 samples, six frameshift mutations were identified in six MSI colorectal cancers (two cell lines and four tumor tissues) but not in MSS colorectal cancers. Of the six MSI colorectal cancers containing PTEN mutation, two case (one cell line and one tumor tissue) showed biallelic mutation of PTEN. Furthermore, to compare the frequency of PTEN mutation with that of other MSI target genes, the mononucleotide repeat sequences of TGF-betaRII, BAX, IGFIIR, hMSH6 and hMSH3 were analyzed. The frequencies of frameshift mutation were revealed 78% in TGF-betaRII, 56% in BAX, 46.9% in hMSH3, 37.5% in hMSH6, 21.9% in IGFIIR, and 18.8% in PTEN. These results suggest that the PTEN gene is a target of genomic instability in MSI colorectal tumorigenesis.

Colorectal Neoplasms↗

The novel ependymin related gene UCC1 is highly expressed in colorectal tumor cells.

Normal cells differ from malignant tumor cells in the transcription levels of many different genes. Two colorectal tumor cell lines were compared with a normal colorectal cell line by differential display reverse transcription PCR to screen for tumor cell specific differentially transcribed genes. By this strategy the upregulation of a novel gene was detected designated as 'upregulated in colorectal cancer gene-1' (UCC1). The UCC1 gene transcript level is increased in cultured tumor cells and in two out of three analyzed colorectal tumor tissue specimens compared to normal cultured cells and to corresponding normal tissue samples. Remarkably, the UCC1 protein shows significant sequence similarity to the highly divergent piscine glycoproteins termed ependymins which are synthesized by leptomeningeal fibroblasts and secreted into the cerebrospinal fluid.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Upregulated expression of angiogenesis genes and down regulation of cell cycle genes in human colorectal cancer tissue determined by cDNA macroarray.

The differential expression of hundreds of tightly, transcriptionally controlled genes in isolated human colorectal cancer and respective normal mucosa from two patients was analyzed by the cDNA macroarray technique. mRNA prepared from the colorectal cancer tumors was compared with 588 genes spotted onto the filter. Case A showed down-regulation of the expression of cell-cycle-related genes including cyclins, cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 2, and CDK-activating kinase, as compared with normal mucosa from the same patient. The tumors showed up-regulation of expression of angiogenesis-related genes such as type II cytoskeletal 8 keratin, metalloproteinase subtypes, VEGF, and bFGF, to over 5-fold the levels in normal mucosa. Thus, colorectal carcinoma tissues are characterized by the upregulation of molecules related with angiogenesis. These results suggest that angiogenesis-related molecules are suitable candidates for target-based therapies for colorectal cancer patients. In case B, the largest difference in expression between the tumor and mucosal tissues was observed in the MMP-1 gene. In contrast to the first case, there was no increase in expression of angiogenesis-related molecules or decrease in expression of cell-cycle-regulatory molecules. The expression profile was quite different between these two patients. This approach may eventually provide a mean of selecting target-based drugs in individual colon cancer patients.

Adult↗

[Loss of heterozygosity involving DCC gene in human colorectal cancers is correlated with the metastatic potential].

DCC gene located at chromosome 18q21.3 is an important tumor-supressor gene associated with tumorigenesis and progression, especially in colorectal carcinomas. Adopting Southern blot technique and RFLP analysis, 33 primary Chinese colorectal cancer patients were examined for loss of heterozygosity (LOH) of DCC gene. Among 16 informative cases, 6 (38%) showed allelic deletion. 18q LOH was correlated with lymph node and hepatic metastases (P < 0.05). The results indicate that application of molecular genetics is of value in ascertaining the metastatic potential of colorectal carcinomas.

Adult↗

Gene therapy for colorectal cancer.

Colorectal cancer is an important public health problem worldwide. Gene therapy has therapeutic potential for patients with advanced or recurrent colorectal cancer, incurable by conventional treatments. To date, many strategies of gene therapy have been explored, including mutant gene correction, prodrug activation, immune stimulation and genetically-modified oncolytic viruses. Although the preclinical results of gene therapy for colorectal cancer have shown promise, gene therapy is still at an early stage of clinical development and has not yet shown a significant therapeutic benefit for patients. The main obstacles for introduction of gene therapy to patients are poor targeting selectivity of the vectors and inefficient gene transfer. As the science supporting tumour-selective vectors evolves, gene therapy may expand rapidly in the clinical practice of colorectal cancer treatment.

Animals↗

[Study of an enhancer in promoter region of human colorectal cancer related ST13 gene].

OBJECTIVE: To study the base sequence of an enhancer in up-stream 5'-flank near regulation region (from -595 to +74) of human colorectal cancer related gene ST13. METHODS: Several deletion PCR primers were designed. Amplified DNA fragments of ST13 gene 5'-flank near region were cloned with pGEMT-EASY vector and sequenced; then subcloned into several pGL2 report vectors respectively. Equal quantitative recombined DNA was transfected into SW620 cell lines and the luciferase activity was checked. RESULTS: Several amplified base sequence fragments (669 bp,263 bp,163 bp) in pGL2-Basic all enhanced and promoted luciferase gene expression strongly. The 47 bp and 101 bp fragments didn't promote luciferase gene expression. 101 bp fragment recombined with pGL2-Promoter enhanced luciferase gene expression distinctly (P<0.01), but the effect was less strong than the positive pGL2-Control(P<0.05). CONCLUSION: The base sequence 101 bp (from -595 to -494) in up-stream 5'-flank near regulation region of colorectal cancer related gene ST13 is an enhancer regulating gene transcript.

Base Sequence↗

Mutation of the DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) 1 gene in human colorectal cancers.

Alteration of DNA methylation is one of the most consistent epigenetic changes in human cancers. DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) 1 is a major enzyme that determines genomic methylation patterns. In order to understand the significance of mutations of the DNMT1 gene during human carcinogenesis, we performed polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism analysis using 46 oligonucleotide primer sets for all 40 coding exons and the 5'-flanking region (450 bp) of the DNMT1 gene in 29 colorectal cancers, 32 stomach cancers, 40 hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) and a corresponding sample of non-cancerous tissue from each case. Mutations in coding exons of the DNMT1 gene were detected in two (7%) of the colorectal cancers: they consisted of one-base deletion resulting in deletion of the whole catalytic domain and a point mutation resulting in a single amino acid substitution. No stomach cancers or HCCs showed mutations in the coding exons of the DNMT1 gene. No mutation in the 5'-flanking region of the DNMT1 gene was detected in any of the colorectal and stomach cancers or HCCs. These data suggest that mutational inactivation of the DNMT1 gene that potentially causes a genome-wide alteration of DNA methylation status may be a rare event during human carcinogenesis.

Aged↗

erbB-2 gene expression in colorectal cancer.

The expression of the erbB-2 gene product was studied immunohistochemically on 38 normal colonic mucosae, 14 adenomas and 44 colon cancers, with the use of two anti-erbB-2 antibodies, a rabbit polyclonal antibody specific for the intracellular domain and a mouse monoclonal antibody specific for the extracellular domain. Normal mucosae and adenomas were not stained. Five cases (11%) of colon cancer were positive with the polyclonal anti-erbB-2 antibody, while only one case was positive with the monoclonal antibody. Most of the positive cases were in Dukes C stage. The rare overexpression of the erbB-2 protein in colon cancer seems to indicate a minor role for the gene in colorectal tumorigenesis.

Adenoma↗

Lack of involvement of nucleotide excision repair gene polymorphisms in colorectal cancer.

DNA repair has an essential role in protecting the genome from damage by endogenous and environmental agents. Polymorphisms in DNA repair genes and differences in repair capacity between individuals have been widely documented. For colorectal cancer, the loss of mismatch repair gene activity is a key genetic determinant. Nucleotide excision repair (NER), recombination repair (RR) and base excision repair (BER) pathways have critical roles in protection against other cancers, and we wished to investigate their role in colorectal cancer. We have compared the frequency of polymorphisms in the NER genes, XPD, XPF, XPG, ERCC1; in the BER gene, XRCC1; and in the RR gene, XRCC3; in colorectal cancer patients and in a control group. No significant associations were found for any of the NER gene polymorphisms or for the XRCC1 polymorphism. The C allele (position 18067) of the XRCC3 gene was weakly but significantly associated with colorectal cancer (odds ratio 1.52, 95% confidence interval 1.04-2.22, P=0.03). For all patients who were heterozygous for any of the repair genes studied, tumour tissue was investigated for loss of heterozygosity (LOH). Only one example of LOH was found for all the genes examined. From the association and LOH data, we conclude that these genes do not have an important role in protection against colorectal carcinogenesis.

Cell Transformation, Neoplastic↗

Apoptosis inhibiting factor Bcl-xL might be the crucial member of the Bcl-2 gene family in colorectal cancer.

Since the role of the Bcl-2 gene family has been only poorly investigated in colorectal cancer, we have examined the expression of the apoptosis blockers Bcl-xL and Bcl-2, as well as the proapoptotic factors Bax and Bak. Northern blot analysis and immunohistochemistry were performed on normal and cancerous colonic tissue from 12 patients. In colorectal cancer, Bcl-xL immunoreaction was stronger than in normal controls, and 83% of the cancers had increased Bcl-xL mRNA expression. The median densitometric Bcl-xL values were 3.4-fold higher in carcinomas (P<0.005). In contrast to the normal colon, colorectal carcinomas often lack any Bcl-2 immunostaining, and Bcl-2 mRNA was not detectable by Northern blots either. Bax was not obviously altered in colorectal cancer, either at the protein level or at the mRNA level compared to the normal control colon. Bak mRNA expression exhibited a wide variation in carcinomas, but was somewhat decreased in comparison to the controls. Of these members of the Bcl-2 gene family, Bcl-xL seems to play a major role in colorectal tumorigenesis and disease progression. An agonistic effect might have caused the tendency for reduced Bak expression. The Bcl-2/Bax regulation system of cell homeostasis seems to be of lesser importance.

Aged↗

NIH3T3 cells expressing the deleted in colorectal cancer tumor suppressor gene product stimulate neurite outgrowth in rat PC12 pheochromocytoma cells.

The Deleted in Colorectal Cancer (DCC) gene is a candidate tumor suppressor gene that is predicted to encode a transmembrane polypeptide with strong similarity to the neural cell adhesion molecule (N-CAM) family. Previous studies have suggested that several different N-CAMs, when expressed in non-neuronal cell types can stimulate neurite outgrowth from PC12 rat pheochromocytoma cells. Based on the predicted structural similarity of DCC to N-CAMs, we sought to determine whether NIH3T3 cells expressing DCC could stimulate neurite outgrowth in PC12 cells. We found that NIH3T3 cell lines expressing DCC could stimulate PC12 cells to extend neurites. Supernatants from DCC-transfected NIH3T3 cells did not induce neurite outgrowth above background levels, suggesting that cell-cell interaction was required. NIH3T3 cells expressing a truncated form of DCC, lacking the majority of the cytoplasmic domain sequences, also failed to induce neurite outgrowth above the levels seen with control NIH3T3 cells, suggesting that the cytoplasmic domain of DCC was necessary for its neurite-promoting function. In contrast to NGF-mediated neurite outgrowth, the DCC-mediated response was inhibited by treatment with pertussis toxin or the combination of N- and L-type calcium channel blockers, and was unaffected by the transcriptional inhibitor cordycepin. The data suggest that the DCC protein can function in a fashion analogous to other N-CAMs to alter PC12 cell phenotype through intracellular pathways distinct from those involved in NGF signaling.

3T3 Cells↗

NM23 gene product expression does not predict lymph node metastases or survival in young patients with colorectal cancer.

NM23 gene product is a putative metastases suppressor gene which has structural homology to a nucleoside diphosphate kinase. Previous studies examining the relationship between NM23 gene product expression and survival in patients with colorectal cancer have revealed conflicting results. However, no study has focused on young patients with colorectal cancer. This study was carried out to determine if expression of the NM23 gene product was correlated with metastatic potential and survival in young patients (45 years and under) with colorectal cancer. Eighty- one patients with colorectal cancer were studied and the presence of the NM23 gene product (H1) was detected using standard immunohistochemical techniques. NM23 gene product expression did not correlate with tumour stage, lymph node involvement by tumour, presence of distant metastases, extramural vascular invasion or degree of tumour differentiation. Independent risk factors for overall survival were: Dukes' stage (p=0.00001) and extramural vascular invasion (p=0.003). NM23 expression was not an independent prognostic indicator (p=0.55). Therefore, NM23 expression does not correlate with existing indicators of tumour aggressiveness and behaviour nor is it an independent predictor of survival in young patients with colorectal cancer.

Adolescent↗

Microsatellite instability and mutations in DNA mismatch repair genes in sporadic colorectal cancers.

PURPOSE: This study was designed to investigate the frequency of mutations in DNA mismatch repair genes in sporadic colorectal cancers. METHODS: Genomic DNAs procured from paraffin blocks of the pathologic specimens from 230 consecutive patients with colorectal cancer were examined for their microsatellite instability status using a mononucleotide microsatellite marker, BAT-26, and also evaluated expressions of hMLH1, hMSH2, and hMSH6 proteins by immunohistochemical staining. Any of these 230 patients did not have family histories of hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer, familial adenomatous polyposis, colorectal cancer, or hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal-related cancers, such as endometrial, small bowel, and ureteral and renal pelvic cancers. When microsatellite instability was positive, mutations in the simple repeated sequences of TGF-betaRII, BAX, IGF IIR, hMSH3, and hMSH6 genes were examined. In microsatellite instability-positive or staining-negative cases, polymerase chain reaction-single-strand conformation polymorphism and DNA sequencing detected mutations of hMLH1, hMSH2, and hMSH6 genes. If mutations were found in tumor tissue samples, we tested for a germline mutation with a microdissected corresponding normal tissue. RESULTS: Among 230 cases of sporadic colorectal cancer, 21 (9.1 percent) manifested microsatellite instability. In the immunohistochemical staining, 20 (8.6 percent) showed loss of expressions. All 20 staining-negative cases were microsatellite instability-positive. Only 1 of 21 (4.8 percent) microsatellite instability-positive cases showed intact staining for three proteins. The frame-shift mutations of the simple repetitive sequences were found in 17 cases (81.0 percent) in TGF-betaRII, 11 (52.4 percent) in BAX, 5 (23.8 percent) in IGF IIR, 7 (33.3 percent) in hMSH3, and 8 (38.1 percent) in hMSH6 genes. Germline mutation was observed in only one case, which accounts for 4.8 percent among positive microsatellite instability and 0.4 percent of total patients, and was found in hMSH2. Five somatic mutations (2 in hMLH1, 2 in hMSH2, and 1 in hMSH6) also were found. CONCLUSION: The results indicated that a germline mutation of DNA mismatch repair gene was a rare event in sporadic colorectal cancers.

Base Pair Mismatch↗

HMGI(Y) gene expression in colorectal cancer: comparison with some histological typing, grading, and clinical staging.

We investigated HMGI(Y) gene expression in 81 pairs of frozen samples obtained from colorectal carcinomas and adjacent normal colorectal mucosas and in four samples from colorectal mucosa from patients without neoplastic diseases. In this group, HMGI(Y)-positive/-negative expression was compared with some histological features, grading, and clinical staging of neoplasms investigated to assess its potential role as a prognostic marker for colorectal cancer. Expression of HMGI(Y) gene was found in 51 of 81 cases of colorectal cancers, while, in normal mucosa, expression of this gene was not observed. HMGI(Y) gene expression was associated with more advanced tumors (T3, T4) and metastases to lymph nodes (N1, N2). The most interesting finding was that expression of this gene correlated with distant metastases. HMGI(Y) gene expression was detected in all cases classified as M1 (n = 19, p = 0.0008). We did not find any association between age, gender, tumor localization, histological type and this gene expression.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Somatic alterations of the DPC4 gene in human colorectal cancers in vivo.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The chromosome region 18q21 has been shown to be frequently deleted in colorectal cancers, and such frequent allelic loss is a hallmark of the presence of a tumor-suppressor gene. The DPC4 gene, which is located at 18q21, has been identified as a tumor-suppressor gene from examination of pancreatic cancers. The aim of the present study was to determine if it might also be altered in colorectal cancers. METHODS: Mutation analyses of the DPC4 gene were performed on complementary DNA samples from 31 primary colorectal cancer specimens using a combination of polymerase chain reaction, single-strand conformation polymorphism, and DNA sequencing. RESULTS: Four missense mutations producing amino acid substitutions and a somatic 12-base pair deletion in the coding region of the DPC4 gene were detected in the 31 cancers (16%; 5 of 31). CONCLUSIONS: The DPC4 gene may play a role as a tumor-suppressor gene in a fraction of colorectal cancers; however, while allelic loss at 18q21 is very often seen in colorectal cancers, only a minority show DPC4 mutations, suggesting that there might be another tumor-suppressor gene in this chromosome region.

Adult↗

DHPLC mutation analysis of the hereditary nonpolyposis colon cancer (HNPCC) genes hMLH1 and hMSH2.

Denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography (DHPLC) is an efficient method for detection of mutations involving a single or few numbers of nucleotides, and it has been successfully used for mutation detection in disease-related genes. Colorectal cancer is one of the most common cancers, and mutations in the genes for hereditary nonpolyposis colon cancer (HNPCC), hMLH1 and hMSH2, also involve mainly point mutations. Sequence analysis is supposed to be a screening method with high sensitivity; however, it is time-consuming and expensive. We therefore decided to test sensitivity and reproducibility of DHPLC for 71 sequence variants in hMLH1 and hMSH2 initially found by sequence analysis in DNA samples of German HNPCC patients. DHPLC conditions of the PCR products were based on the melting pattern of the wild-type sequence of the corresponding PCR fragments. All but one of the 71 mutations was detected using DHPLC (sensitivity of 97%). Running time per sample averaged only 7 min, and the system is highly automated. Thus DHPLC is a rapid and sensitive method for the detection of hMLH1 and hMSH2 sequence variants.

Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing↗

Evaluation of NTHL1, NEIL1, NEIL2, MPG, TDG, UNG and SMUG1 genes in familial colorectal cancer predisposition.

BACKGROUND: The observation that germline mutations in the oxidative DNA damage repair gene MUTYH cause colorectal cancer (CRC) provides strong evidence that dysregulation of the base excision repair (BER) pathway influences disease susceptibility. It is conceivable that germline sequence variation in other BER pathway genes such as NTHL1, NEIL1, NEIL2, MPG, TDG, UNG and SMUG1 also contribute to CRC susceptibility. METHODS: To evaluate whether sequence variants of NTHL1, NEIL1, NEIL2, MPG, TDG, UNG and SMUG1 genes might act as CRC susceptibility alleles, we screened the coding sequence and intron-exon boundaries of these genes in 94 familial CRC cases in which involvement of known genes had been excluded. RESULTS: Three novel missense variants were identified NEIL2 C367A, TDG3 A196G and UNG2 C262T in patients, which were not observed in 188 healthy control DNAs. CONCLUSION: We detected novel germline alterations in NEIL2, TDG and UNG patients with CRC. The results suggest a limited role for NTHL1, NEIL1, NEIL2, MPG, TDG, UNG and SMUG1 in development of CRC.

3' Untranslated Regions↗