Alteration of sister chromatid exchange frequencies in gastric cancer and chronic atrophic gastritis patients with and without H. pylori infection.
OBJECTIVE
To determine, by counting sister chromatid exchange (SCE) frequencies, whether genetic impairment and DNA damage have an effect on the pathogenesis of gastric cancer (GC).


METHODS
Analysis of SCE is a cytogenetic technique used to show DNA damage as a result of an exchange of DNA fragments between sister chromatids. We analyzed SCE frequency in 24 patients with GC, 26 patients with chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG), and 15 normal controls. The presence of H. pylori was confirmed by urease test, toluidine-blue stain and hematoxylin-eosin stain.


RESULTS
SCE was significantly increased in H. pylori-negative GC patients, and in H. pylori-negative CAG patients compared with controls (7.41 +/- 1.36 and 6.92 +/- 1.20, respectively, vs 5.54 +/- 0.8, P < 0.001). There was no difference in the SCE frequency between H. pylori-negative GC patients and H. pylori-negative CAG patients (P > 0.05). On other hand, the SCE frequencies in H. pylori-positive GC patients were higher than those in H. pylori-positive CAG patients (9.20 +/- 0.94 vs 7.93 +/- 0.81, P < 0.01). Furthermore, H. pylori-positive GC patients had a higher SCE frequency than H. pylori-negative GC patients (9.20 +/- 0.94 vs 7.41 +/- 1.36, P < 0.001). Similarly, a significant difference was detected between H. pylori-positive CAG patients and H. pylori-negative CAG patients (7.93 +/- 0.81 vs 6.92 +/- 1.20, P < 0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
We suggest the increased SCE in patients reflects a genomic instability that may be operative in gastric carcinogenesis.
Karaman
Ali
A
Erzurum State Hospital, Department of Medical Genetics, Erzurum 25240, Turkey. alikaramandr@hotmail.com
Binici
Doğan Nasir
DN
Kabalar
Mehmet Eşref
ME
Dursun
Hakan
H
Kurt
Ali
A
D000368:Aged; D004249:DNA Damage; D005260:Female; D005757:Gastritis, Atrophic / Q000150:complications / Q000235:genetics*; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000150:complications*; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000201:enzymology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D012016:Reference Values; D012854:Sister Chromatid Exchange; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000401:mortality; D014510:Urease / Q000032:analysis
D014510:Urease