title: Role of MUTYH in human cancer.
abstract: MUTYH, a human ortholog of MutY, is a post-replicative DNA glycosylase, highly conserved throughout evolution, involved in the correction of mismatches resulting from a faulty replication of the oxidized base 8-hydroxyguanine (8-oxodG). In particular removal of adenine from A:8-oxodG mispairs by MUTYH activity is followed by error-free base excision repair (BER) events, leading to the formation of C:8-oxodG base pairs. These are the substrate of another BER enzyme, the OGG1 DNA glycosylase, which then removes 8-oxodG from DNA. Thus the combined action of OGG1 and MUTYH prevents oxidative damage-induced mutations, i.e. GC->TA transversions. Germline mutations in MUTYH are associated with a recessively heritable colorectal polyposis, now referred to as MUTYH-associated polyposis (MAP). Here we will review the phenotype(s) associated with MUTYH inactivation from bacteria to mammals, the structure of the MUTYH protein, the molecular mechanisms of its enzymatic activity and the functional characterization of MUTYH variants. The relevance of these results will be discussed to define the role of specific human mutations in colorectal cancer risk together with the possible role of MUTYH inactivation in sporadic cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environment, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Roma, Italy.
authors.forename: Filomena
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mazzei
authors.affiliation: Experimental Oncology 1, Centro di Riferimento Oncologico, IRCCS, Via F.Gallini 2, 33081 Aviano, PN, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Viel
authors.affiliation: Department of Environment, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Roma, Italy. Electronic address: Margherita.bignami@iss.it.
authors.forename: Margherita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bignami
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D045647:DNA Glycosylases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D004260:DNA Repair; D006801:Humans; D009154:Mutation; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics*; D010641:Phenotype
chemical_list: D045647:DNA Glycosylases; C061738:mutY adenine glycosylase