title: Urokinase gene 3'-UTR T/C polymorphism is associated with oral cancer.
abstract: Urokinase is thought to be involved in the formation of oral cancer, although there is a lack of genetic evidence. Our aim was to study single nucleotide polymorphisms in order to investigate the possibility. A total of 130 oral cancer patients and 105 controls were studied. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) based restriction analysis was used to identify the C/T polymorphism of the urokinase gene, which is located on the 3'-untranslated region (3'-UTR) of chromosome 10. There was a significant difference in the distribution of the urokinase gene 3'-UTR C/T polymorphism frequency between cancer patients and the normal control group (P < 0.05). The "T" allele was prominent in the cancer group. The odds ratio for the risk of the "T" allele in cancer patients was 2.71 (95% CI = 1.325 approximately 5.562). The cancer patients were further categorized according to gender and whether or not they were habitual smokers or betel nut chewers. These clinical parameters were then compared with tumor cell differentiation and tumor progression. No significant differences were found. Therefore, the urokinase gene 3'-UTR "T" allele is associated with oral cancer and may play a role in oral cancer formation. However, we did not find the relationship between tumor progression and this polymorphism.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ming-Hsui
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Tsai
authors.forename: Wen-Chi
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Huey-Yi
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Fuu-Jen
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Tsai
mesh_terms: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D014568:Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions; D014568:Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator