title: Rat ferritin-H: cDNA cloning, differential expression and localization during hepatocarcinogenesis.
abstract: Elevated serum ferritin levels, especially of the H subunit, accompany many clinical malignancies. By using the subtraction-enhanced display technique, we have recently isolated several cDNA clones which are over-expressed in rat hepatocellular carcinoma induced by diethylnitrosamine. One 830-base-pair clone was 88% similar to human ferritin-H cDNA and encoded a 182 amino acid protein which is 97% homologous to human ferritin-H chain. Hepatic mRNA levels of ferritin-H were increased markedly at the early stage of diethylnitrosamine-induced hepatocarcinogenesis in the rat (6 weeks) and appeared more than 10-fold overexpressed as the tumour progressed. In contrast, hepatic ferritin-H mRNA remained constant during liver regeneration after a 70% partial hepatectomy. In situ hybridization showed that over-expression of ferritin-H was exclusively localized to preneoplastic foci, to tumour nodules and to tumour cells invading blood vessels. These findings suggest that ferritin-H is a highly conserved protein, its over-expression during tumour development is phenotypically correlated with tumour initiation and/or progression, and it is useful as an early marker for hepatocellular carcinoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Internal Medicine, Academic Medical Centre, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: C G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Groenink
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bosma
authors.forename: P H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Reitsma
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: van Deventer
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Chamuleau
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D002273:Carcinogens; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000235:genetics*; D004052:Diethylnitrosamine; D005293:Ferritins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D008114:Liver Neoplasms, Experimental / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D008115:Liver Regeneration; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
chemical_list: D002273:Carcinogens; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D004052:Diethylnitrosamine; D005293:Ferritins