title: Telomerase gene expression in intraductal papillary-mucinous tumors (IPMT): preliminary findings.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The surgical management of IPMT is based upon a preoperative suspicion of malignancy, that is difficult to obtain from the available diagnostic tools.
  
  
  METHODS
  Telomerase gene expression was investigated by means of hTERT/RT-PCR on total RNA from peripheral blood, tumour and non-tumour pancreatic samples of 2 patients with IPMT.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Histological diagnosis was mild-grade dysplasia in the first case and invasive carcinoma in the second. Telomerase expression was undetectable in all the samples derived from the first case. Blood and tumour samples from the second patient were positive for telomerase mRNA expression, while the pancreatic non-tumour specimen was not.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The following suggestions are made: 1) the telomerase gene expression seems to be implicated in the malignant evolution of IMPT; 2) the malignant transformation may be limited to a single area of the gland; 3) the presence of invasive carcinoma may be preoperatively suspected by peripheral venous blood sample collection. A possible clinical employment of telomerase gene expression determination in the management of IPMT is thus hypothesized.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, Surgical Clinic, University of Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Franco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Nodari
authors.forename: Gian Luca
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Baiocchi
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Salvi
authors.forename: Giuseppina
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: De Petro
authors.forename: Arianna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Coniglio
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ferrari Bravo
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Baronchelli
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Barlati
authors.forename: Stefano Maria
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Giulini
mesh_terms: D000231:Adenocarcinoma, Papillary / Q000201:enzymology*; D021441:Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal / Q000201:enzymology*; D018291:Cystadenoma, Mucinous / Q000201:enzymology*; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D005260:Female; D015971:Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D019098:Telomerase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D019098:Telomerase