Gene expression patterns in human liver cancers.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a leading cause of death worldwide. Using cDNA microarrays to characterize patterns of gene expression in HCC, we found consistent differences between the expression patterns in HCC compared with those seen in nontumor liver tissues. The expression patterns in HCC were also readily distinguished from those associated with tumors metastatic to liver. The global gene expression patterns intrinsic to each tumor were sufficiently distinctive that multiple tumor nodules from the same patient could usually be recognized and distinguished from all the others in the large sample set on the basis of their gene expression patterns alone. The distinctive gene expression patterns are characteristic of the tumors and not the patient; the expression programs seen in clonally independent tumor nodules in the same patient were no more similar than those in tumors from different patients. Moreover, clonally related tumor masses that showed distinct expression profiles were also distinguished by genotypic differences. Some features of the gene expression patterns were associated with specific phenotypic and genotypic characteristics of the tumors, including growth rate, vascular invasion, and p53 overexpression.
Chen
Xin
X
Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California 94305, USA.
Cheung
Siu Tim
ST
So
Samuel
S
Fan
Sheung Tat
ST
Barry
Christopher
C
Higgins
John
J
Lai
Kin-Man
KM
Ji
Jiafu
J
Dudoit
Sandrine
S
Ng
Irene O L
IO
Van De Rijn
Matt
M
Botstein
David
D
Brown
Patrick O
PO
D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D002455:Cell Division / Q000235:genetics; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D016158:Genes, p53; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000502:physiology*; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D012334:RNA, Neoplasm / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification
D012334:RNA, Neoplasm