Detection and significance of promoter hypermethylation of p16 gene and MGMT gene in plasma from non-small cell lung cancer patients / 肿瘤

ABSTRACT

Objective: To detect the aberrant methylation in the promoter of p 16 and O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) gene in peripheral plasma from non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients and to evaluate the clinical significance in the screening and early diagnosis of NSCLC. Methods: A nested methylation-specific PCR (nMSP) was performed for the detection of promoter hypermethylation of p16 gene and MGMT gene in plasma from 65 NSCLC patients. Results: Of the 65 plasma samples, p16 gene promoter hypermethylation was detected in 19 patients (29.23%) and MGMT gene promoter hypermethylation was found in 16 patients (24.62%). However, promoter hypermethylation in p16 gene and MGMT gene was not found in plasma samples from the normal controls (P 0.05). Conclusion: Detection of the aberrant methylation in the promoter of p16 gene and MGMT gene in plasma from NSCLC patients by nMSP method might provide valuable information for the screening, early diagnosis, and prediction of prognosis of NSCLC.