Investigation of the E-cadherin Promoter Methylation in Patients with Colorectal Cancer in Iran

Authors
S. Mohammad Ganji 1
E. Samei 1
S. A. Hashemi 1
A. Rezagholizadeh 2
A. Kazemnejad 3
Z. Mostakhdemin Hosseini 4
1 Department of Molecular Biotechnology, National Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (NIGEB), Tehran, Iran
2 Department of Biology, Islamic Azad University, East Tehran branch, Tehran, Iran
3 Department of Biostatistics, School of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
4 Iran Tumor bank, Cancer Institute, Imam Khomeini Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Science, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Objective: E-cadherin is widely down-regulated and tightly associated with tumor invasion and metastasis in multiple human cancer types. Recent studies have shown that aberrant methylation of the E-cadherin gene promoter contributes to its silencing. However, information regarding epigenetic inactivation of E-cadherin in colorectal cancer is insufficient. Herein, we correlate association of the methylation of the E-Cadherin promoter with pathological features of colorectal cancer as well as history and demographic data. Methods: We used methylation specific polymerase chain reaction (MSPCR) to examine methylation status of the 5’ CpG island of E-cadherin along with its expression by using RT-PCR following surgical resection of 66 unrelated patients with colorectal cancer. Results: Results showed that 35 out of 66 tumor DNA samples (53%) showed aberrant methylations. In contrast, all normal tissues were unmethylated. Conclusion: The obtained results show a similarity with the Japanese (54.5%) and Greek (55.7%) populations. The results have confirmed methylation of this gene in sporadic colorectal cancer cases (40.8%) in the Iranian population by researchers in Shiraz. These data suggest that epigenetic silencing via aberrant methylation of the E-cadherin promoter plays a critical role in the inactivation of this tumor suppressor gene in colorectal cancer.

Keywords

 
 
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Pathobiology Reserach
Volume 16, Issue 2
September 2013
Pages 75-83