title: Downregulation of Checkpoint Protein Kinase 2 in the Urothelium of Healthy Male Tobacco Smokers.
abstract: With this letter to the editor we present for the first time a study on CHEK2 expression in normal urothelium of healthy male smokers, former smokers and non-smokers. We could show a statistically significant downregulation of this DNA repair gene in current smokers compared to non-smokers, suggesting that smoking downregulates CHEK2 in normal urothelium, probably associated with an early step in carcinogenesis of urothelial bladder carcinoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Medical Center St. Josef, Regensburg University Medical Center, Regensburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Breyer
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Denzinger
authors.forename: Arndt
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hartmann
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Otto
mesh_terms: D015536:Down-Regulation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D000074285:Smokers; D001749:Urinary Bladder Neoplasms; D019459:Urothelium; D014026:Nicotiana