title: Identification of frequent differentially methylated region in sporadic bladder cancers.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Aberrant methylation levels in the cytosine-phosphate-guanine island (CpGi) region from exon 1 to intron 1 of the zygote arrest 1 (ZAR1) gene have been reported in several types of human cancers, including melanoma, brain tumor, and hepatocellular carcinoma. In the present study, methylation levels at the CpGi of ZAR1 exon 1/intron 1 in bladder cancer specimens were analyzed using mass spectrometry.
  
  
  METHODS
  Genomic DNA was extracted from 20 sporadic bladder cancers, and the methylation levels at ZAR1 CpGi were quantitatively examined by the MassARRAY EpiTYPER method.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The methylation levels at specific CpG sites of the ZAR1 CpGi were significantly lower in high-grade bladder cancers than in low-grade tumors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of the present study indicated a decreased methylation level at CpG sites of ZAR1 exon 1/intron 1. CpGi could serve as a biomarker for invasive bladder cancer.
authors.affiliation: Division of Urology, Nihon University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Ryo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hasegawa
authors.forename: Kyoko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Fujiwara
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Obinata
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kawashima
authors.forename: Yui
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shinojima
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Igarashi
authors.forename: Xiaofei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Srimoyee
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ghosh
authors.forename: Hiroki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nagase
authors.forename: Satoru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Takahashi
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000235:genetics*; D018899:CpG Islands; D019175:DNA Methylation; D004527:Egg Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D005091:Exons; D006801:Humans; D007438:Introns; D060787:Neoplasm Grading; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D019032:Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization; D001749:Urinary Bladder Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D004527:Egg Proteins; C471631:Zar1 protein, human