FHIT mRNA expression in thymoma.
OBJECTIVE
The FHIT gene is located at 3p14.2 a region frequently lost in multiple tumour types. Loss of FHIT expression has been found to occur frequently in multiple tumour types. We wished to investigate that FHIT mRNA levels in a series of thymomas.


METHODS
Expression of FHIT messenger ribonucleic acid (RNA) was evaluated by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using a LightCycler in 49 thymomas and 11 adjacent histologically normal thymus samples from patients.


RESULTS
FHIT transcripts in tumour samples (28.6+/-35.8) at levels significantly lower than those in normal thymus samples (573.9+/-1028.0, p=0.001). No relationship was seen between FHIT gene expression and age, gender, or pathological thymoma subtypes. FHIT mRNA expression in invasive thymomas (stage II-IV, 34.5+/-39.2) was significantly higher than that in stage I thymomas (20.7+/-29.7, p=0.01). Immunohistochemistry showed that p21 protein positive thymoma had a tendency towards higher FHIT gene expression than in p21 negative thymoma.


CONCLUSIONS
Decreased FHIT expression might be seen in early stage thymoma, suggesting that loss of FHIT expression may associate with tumorigenesis of thymoma.
Sasaki
H
H
Department of Surgery II, Nagoya City University Medical School, Nagoya, Japan. hisasaki@med.nagoya-cu.ac.jp
Yukiue
H
H
Kobayashi
Y
Y
Yano
M
M
Fukai
I
I
Fujii
Y
Y
D017766:Acid Anhydride Hydrolases; D005260:Female; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013945:Thymoma / Q000235:genetics*; D013953:Thymus Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics*; D000099170:Bis(5'-adenosyl)triphosphatase
D017766:Acid Anhydride Hydrolases; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D000099170:Bis(5'-adenosyl)triphosphatase