title: Tumor-specific changes in mtDNA content in human cancer.
abstract: Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) alterations are associated with various cancer types, suggesting that the mitochondrial genome may be a critical contributing factor in carcinogenesis. mtDNA alterations have been suggested as a potentially sensitive and specific biomarker for several cancer types. We examined mtDNA content in 25 pairs of normal and tumor breast tissue samples, 37 papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), 21 benign thyroid neoplasms and in 20 paired normal and PTC samples. Our results showed that mtDNA content was reduced in 80% of the breast tumors relative to their corresponding normal. mtDNA was increased in papillary thyroid carcinomas, however, when compared to the corresponding normal DNA taken from the same individual. Also, mtDNA content was increased in none-paired PTC samples compared to the normal controls. Our findings indicate that changes in mtDNA content during carcinogenesis may be regulated in a tumor specific manner. Additionally, changes in mtDNA levels did not correlate with tumor grade and metastasis, suggesting that these alterations may occur in the early stages of tumorigenesis. Our findings suggest that mtDNA content can be used as a molecular diagnostic tool to help identify genetic abnormalities in human tumors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Head and Neck Cancer Research Division, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mambo
authors.forename: Aditi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chatterjee
authors.forename: Mingzhao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Xing
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tallini
authors.forename: Bryan R
authors.initials: BR
authors.lastname: Haugen
authors.forename: Sai-Ching J
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Yeung
authors.forename: Saraswati
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sukumar
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sidransky
mesh_terms: D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000032:analysis / Q000235:genetics*; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000032:analysis / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012016:Reference Values; D013959:Thyroid Diseases / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D013964:Thyroid Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm