[Alterations in DPC4 gene in pancreatic cancers].
OBJECTIVE
To examine the alterations in the DPC4 gene in pancreatic cancers.


METHODS
Five pancreatic adenocarcinoma cell lines (P1, P2, P3, P4, and P7) and 11 fresh frozen pancreatic cancer tissues were monitored with polymerase chain reaction (PCR), single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis to demonstrate the sequence of deletion and mutation in 6 exons (1, 2, 3, 4, 8, and 11) of the DPC4 gene.


RESULTS
Mutation in the DPC4 gene was found in 3 of 5 cells lines (P1, P2, and P3). Three of eleven fresh-frozen tissues showed homozygous deletions and two showed intragenic mutations, with a gene alteration frequency of 45.5% (5/11).


CONCLUSIONS
Alterations in tumor-suppressor gene DPC4 may play an important role during the tumorigenesis of pancreatic cancer.
Gu
L
L
Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, China.
Chen
J
J
Cui
Q
Q
D004252:DNA Mutational Analysis; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D009154:Mutation; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D018807:Polymorphism, Single-Stranded Conformational; D051901:Smad4 Protein; D015534:Trans-Activators / Q000235:genetics*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
D004273:DNA, Neoplasm; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; C497796:SMAD4 protein, human; D051901:Smad4 Protein; D015534:Trans-Activators