Three apoptotic genes are upregulated in a patient with Alzheimer's disease and well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma.
We report the case of a 74-year-old man with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and an extensive ulcerative lesion on the right ear. AD is a neurodegenerative disease with progressive loss of memory and cognitive deterioration. It has been suggested that apoptotic cell injury and eventually cell death is a major contributor to the AD neurodegenerative process. The ulcerative lesion was surgically excised and the histological analysis reported a well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma. Caspase-3 (CASP3) plays an important role in neuronal death during nervous system development and under certain pathological conditions. Furthermore, in vitro and in vivo studies reported elevated expression and activation of CASP3 in models of AD. Molecular epidemiological studies suggest that CASP3 may contribute to head and neck squamous cell carcinoma susceptibility and disease progression and that increased CASP3 expression is associated with tumors of the head. Also poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP1) and the leucine zipper downregulated in cancer 1 (LDOC1) genes play a proapoptotic role. We therefore evaluated the differential expression of LDOC1, PARP1, and CASP3 mRNA in peripheral blood leukocytes of our patient. We found increased expression of all these genes compared with the expression in control subjects.
Section of Endocrinology, Andrology and Internal Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine and Systemic Diseases, and Master in Andrological and Human Reproduction Sciences, University of Catania, Catania - Italy. micezia@tiscali.it
Michele
M
Salemi
Domenica
D
Giuffrida
Maria C
MC
Giuffrida
Pier Franco
PF
Soma
Sandro
S
La Vignera
Laura
L
Cimino
Rosita A
RA
Condorelli
Carmelo
C
Romano
Paolo
P
Bosco
Lucia O
LO
Vicari
Aldo E
AE
Calogero
D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000235:genetics*; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000235:genetics; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000150:complications / Q000235:genetics*; D053148:Caspase 3 / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D000071137:Poly (ADP-Ribose) Polymerase-1; D011065:Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerases / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000096:biosynthesis; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000235:genetics*; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*
C120625:LDOC1 protein, human; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins; C499320:PARP1 protein, human; D000071137:Poly (ADP-Ribose) Polymerase-1; D011065:Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerases; D053148:Caspase 3