title: Mutational analysis of the BRAF gene in human tumor cells.
abstract: Genes of the RAF family, which mediate cellular responses to growth signals, encode kinases that are regulated by RAS and participate in the RAS, RAF, mitogen/extracellular signal-regulated kinase, extracellular signal-regulated kinase and mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway. As BRAF is a serine/threonine kinase that is commonly activated by somatic point mutation, it may provide possible diagnostic and therapeutic targets in human malignant tumors. We analyzed exon 15 of the BRAF gene for mutations in 58 lung, 12 breast, six kidney, 14 cervical, four endometrial and 10 ovarian carcinoma cell lines by PCR-SSCP and direct sequencing. The T1796A transversion was found in one (2.9%) of 34 small cell lung carcinoma and one (8.3%) of 12 breast carcinoma cell lines, resulting in a valine-to-glutamate substitution at residue 599 (V599E). One (4.2%) of 24 non-small cell lung carcinoma cell line showed the C1786G transversion, leading to a leucine-to-valine substitution at residue 596 (L596V). No BRAF point mutations were found in any of the other cell lines examined. Our present results suggest that BRAF may not be a frequent target of mutations involved in the pathogenesis of human lung, breast, kidney, cervical, endometrial and ovarian carcinomas.
authors.affiliation: Cytopathology and Gynecology, Osaka Cancer Prevention and Detection Center, Osaka, Japan. mueda@gan-osaka.or.jp
authors.forename: Masatsugu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ueda
authors.forename: Eisaku
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Toji
authors.forename: Osamu
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Nunobiki
authors.forename: Shinji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Izuma
authors.forename: Yoshiaki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Okamoto
authors.forename: Kiyo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Torii
authors.forename: Sadamu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Noda
mesh_terms: D019943:Amino Acid Substitution / Q000235:genetics; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D004252:DNA Mutational Analysis / Q000379:methods; D005091:Exons / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics*; D017354:Point Mutation / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D018807:Polymorphism, Single-Stranded Conformational; D048493:Proto-Oncogene Proteins B-raf / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D048493:Proto-Oncogene Proteins B-raf