title: The 30-bp deletion variant: a polymorphism of latent membrane protein 1 prevalent in endemic and non-endemic areas of nasopharyngeal carcinomas in China.
abstract: Development of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is closely associated with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection. However, NPC occurs with a marked geographic and racial distribution, whereas EBV infection is ubiquitous in the world. This leads to a question whether certain subtypes of EBV have a greater potential to induce cell transformation. Latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1) is an EBV-encoded oncogenic protein and its 30-bp deleted variant (del-LMP1) has been reported to be predominant in biopsies of NPC. We have assessed the polymorphism of LMP1 in 47 biopsies of NPC, 107 cases of throat washings (TWs) from NPC patients, and 106 cases of TWs from non-NPC patients in Guangzhou, an endemic area of NPC in southern China, as well as 103 cases of TWs from healthy donors in Haerbin, a non-endemic area of NPC in northern China. Our results found a similar extent of the LMP1 polymorphism between NPC patients and non-NPC patients in Guangzhou, with the del-LMP1 being predominant in both Guangzhou and Haerbin. Sequence analyses showed identical substitutions in other coding regions of the del-LMP1 isolated from Guangzhou and Haerbin. These results indicate that del-LMP1 represents a geographic or race-associated polymorphism rather than an NPC disease phenotype-associated polymorphism.
authors.affiliation: Cancer Institute, Cancer Center, Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Sciences, 651 Dongfeng East Road, Guangzhou 510060, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Shi
authors.initials: XS
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Kun-Hua
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Hai-Qiang
authors.initials: HQ
authors.lastname: Mai
authors.forename: Wei-Hua
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Jia
authors.forename: Bing-Jian
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.forename: Jian-Chuan
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.forename: Ru-Hua
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Li-Xi
authors.initials: LX
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Xing-Juan
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Qi-Sheng
authors.initials: QS
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Jian-Jing
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Yi-Xin
authors.initials: YX
authors.lastname: Zeng
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000235:genetics*; D002681:China; D005091:Exons; D017353:Gene Deletion; D006801:Humans; D008957:Models, Genetic; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D014763:Viral Matrix Proteins / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: C037662:EBV-associated membrane antigen, Epstein-Barr virus; D014763:Viral Matrix Proteins