Mutation rate of the CDKN2 gene in malignant gliomas.
The CDKN2 gene encodes p16, a protein controlling the cell cycle. CDKN2 is deleted in a relevant number of tumor cell lines, but results of the studies in primary tumors are contradictory. We have investigated by using quantitative polymerase chain reaction and single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis the structure of exon 2 of CDKN2 in 32 malignant gliomas. In 11 tumors the amount of amplified material was 21% of that of controls and in 8 tumors it was 42.3%, suggesting the presence of homozygous and hemizygous deletions of the CDKN2 gene, respectively. However, no abnormality could be detected by single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis. The data confirm in primary gliomas that homozygous deletions are a mechanism of CDKN2 inactivation and suggest that another gene in the vicinity could be targeted by mutations.
Giani
C
C
Istituto Nazionale Neruologico C. Besta, Divisione di Biochimica e Genetica, Milan, Italy.
Finocchiaro
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G
D001483:Base Sequence; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D019941:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p16; D005091:Exons / Q000235:genetics*; D005910:Glioma / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction
D002352:Carrier Proteins; D019941:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p16