title: Mismatch repair gene expression in gastroesophageal cancers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Mismatch repair (MMR) genes play a critical role in maintaining genomic stability, and the impairment of MMR machinery is associated with different human cancers, mainly colorectal cancer. The purpose of our study was to analyze gene expression patterns of three MMR genes (MSH2, MHS6, and EXO1) in gastroesophageal cancers, a pathology in which the contribution of DNA repair genes remains essentially unclear.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 45 Romanian patients diagnosed with sporadic gastroesophageal cancers were included in this study. For each patient, MMR mRNA levels were measured in biopsied tumoral (T) and peritumoral (PT) tissues obtained by upper endoscopy. Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) with specific TaqMan probes was used to measure gene expression levels for MSH2, MSH6, and EXO1 genes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A significant association was observed for the investigated MMR genes, all of which were detected to be upregulated in gastroesophageal tumor samples when compared with paired normal samples. In the stratified analysis, the association was limited to gastric adenocarcinoma samples. We found no statistically significant associations between MMR gene expression and tumor site or histological grade.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In our study, MSH2, MSH6, and EXO1 genes were overexpressed in gastroesophageal cancers. Further investigations based on more samples are necessary to validate our findings.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Craiova, Romania. buradaflorin@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Amelia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dracea
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Angelescu
authors.forename: Mihaela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Danciulescu
authors.forename: Marius
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ciurea
authors.forename: Mihai
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ioana
authors.forename: Florin
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Burada
mesh_terms: D001706:Biopsy; D053843:DNA Mismatch Repair / Q000235:genetics*; D004260:DNA Repair; D045643:DNA Repair Enzymes / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000235:genetics; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005090:Exodeoxyribonucleases / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D051718:MutS Homolog 2 Protein / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D021122:Protein Subunits; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D004273:DNA, Neoplasm; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; C094443:G-T mismatch-binding protein; D021122:Protein Subunits; C114331:EXO1 protein, human; D005090:Exodeoxyribonucleases; C497172:MSH2 protein, human; D051718:MutS Homolog 2 Protein; D045643:DNA Repair Enzymes