title: G-protein inwardly rectifying potassium channel 1 (GIRK 1) gene expression correlates with tumor progression in non-small cell lung cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  G-protein inwardly rectifying potassium channel 1 (GIRK1) is thought to play a role in cell proliferation in cancer, and GIRK1 gene expression level may define a more aggressive phenotype. We detected GIRK1 expression in tissue specimens from patients with non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs) and assessed their clinical characteristics.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analyses, we quantified the expression of GIRK1 in 72 patients with NSCLCs to investigate the relationship between GIRK1 expression and clinicopathologic factors and prognosis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In 72 NSCLC patients, 50 (69%) samples were evaluated as having high GIRK1 gene expression, and 22 (31%) were evaluated as having low GIRK1 gene expression. GIRK1 gene expression was significantly associated with lymph node metastasis, stage (p = 0.0194 for lymph node metastasis; p = 0.0207 for stage). The overall and stage I survival rates for patients with high GIRK1 gene expressed tumors was significantly worse than for those individuals whose tumors had low GIRK1 expression (p = 0.0004 for the overall group; p = 0.0376 for stage I).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data indicate that GIRK1 may contribute to tumor progression and GIRK1 gene expression can serve as a useful prognostic marker in the overall and stage I NSCLCs.
authors.affiliation: First Department of Surgery, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan. takanami@med.teikyo-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Iwao
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Takanami
authors.forename: Yoshimasa
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Inoue
authors.forename: Masatoshi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gika
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000235:genetics* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000235:genetics / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D051676:G Protein-Coupled Inwardly-Rectifying Potassium Channels; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging / Q000379:methods / Q000401:mortality; D024661:Potassium Channels, Inwardly Rectifying / Q000235:genetics*; D060285:Receptors, Autocrine Motility Factor; D018121:Receptors, Cytokine / Q000235:genetics; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D016019:Survival Analysis; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases
chemical_list: D051676:G Protein-Coupled Inwardly-Rectifying Potassium Channels; C497066:KCNJ3 protein, human; D024661:Potassium Channels, Inwardly Rectifying; D018121:Receptors, Cytokine; C555000:AMFR protein, human; D060285:Receptors, Autocrine Motility Factor; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases