Endometrial cancer and microsatellite instability status.

Microsatellite instability (MSI) is an important factor in the development of various cancers as an identifier of a defective DNA mismatch repair system. The objective of our study was to define the association between microsatellite instability status and traditional clinicopathologic characteristics of endometrioid type adenocarcinoma. MATERIAL AND METHODS: MSI status of endometrial cancer was examined by employing the Promega MSI Analysis System. This system uses 5 mononucleotide markers to identify MSI in tumour and normal tissue DNA (BAT-25, BAT-26, NR-21, NR-24, and MONO-27), and 2 pentanucleotide markers (Penta C and Penta D) for specimen identification. In this study, we investigated MSI status in 109 endometrial carcinomas. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: One hundred (92%) of 109 endometrial cancers showed endometrioid type histology and only 9 (8%) non-endometrioid type. MSI-high was found in 17% (17/100) of endometrioid type adenocarcinomas, in 0% (0/9) of non-endometrioid carcinomas. Selected clinicopathologic parameters for endometrioid type adenocarcinomas were compared to the MSI status which was separated into two groups - MSI-high and MSI stable. The results showed that MSI-high status was related to clinicopathologic parameters such as deep myometrial invasion and higher histologic grade in endometrioid type adenocarcinomas.

Impact of microsatellite instability on survival of endometrial cancer patients.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Endometrial cancer (EC) is the most commonly diagnosed gynecologic malignancy among women worldwide and may be classified on the basis of different molecular, pathologic and genetic alterations, including microsatellite instability (MSI). Although MSI is associated with a more favorable outcome in colorectal cancer, its relationship with prognosis in EC cancer is not yet clear. The aim of our study is to identify whether MSI correlates with survival of patients in EC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We examined MSI status and survival of 109 women. MSI was detected by employing the Promega MSI Analysis System, which used 5 mononucleotides markers (BAT-25, BAT-26, NR-21, NR-24, and MONO-27) to identify MSI in a tumor and normal tissue DNA and 2 pentanucleotide markers (Penta C and Penta D) for specimen identification. Median follow-up of patients was 40.4 months (range 5.2-47.9). Survival was estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression analysis was used to assess the effects of different variables on patient survival. RESULTS: MSI-high was detected in 15.6% EC cases, all of which were associated with endometrioid type histology. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed no statistically significant differences between patients with MSI-high and MSI stable tumors (P=0.4) and multivariate analysis concluded that MSI status remained insignificant after stage, histology and tumor grade adjustment (P=0.5). CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed no statistically significant relationship between MSI-high and survival of endometrial cancer patients.

Polµ deficiency increases resistance to oxidative damage and delays liver aging.

Polµ is an error-prone PolX polymerase that contributes to classical NHEJ DNA repair. Mice lacking Polµ (Polµ(-/-)) show altered hematopoiesis homeostasis and DSB repair and a more pronounced nucleolytic resection of some V(D)J junctions. We previously showed that Polµ(-/-) mice have increased learning capacity at old ages, suggesting delayed brain aging. Here we investigated the effect of Polµ(-/-) deficiency on liver aging. We found that old Polµ(-/-) mice (>20 month) have greater liver regenerative capacity compared with wt animals. Old Polµ(-/-) liver showed reduced genomic instability and increased apoptosis resistance. However, Polµ(-/-) mice did not show an extended life span and other organs (e.g., heart) aged normally. Our results suggest that Polµ deficiency activates transcriptional networks that reduce constitutive apoptosis, leading to enhanced liver repair at old age.

Microsatellite instability in radiation-induced murine tumours; influence of tumour type and radiation quality.

PURPOSE: To investigate microsatellite instability (MSI) in radiation-induced murine tumours, its dependence on tissue (haemopoietic, intestinal, mammary, brain and skin) and radiation type. MATERIALS AND METHODS: DNA from spontaneous, X-ray or neutron-induced mouse tumours were used in Polymerase Chain Reactions (PCR) with mono- or di-nucleotide repeat markers. Deviations from expected allele size caused by insertion/deletion events were assessed by capillary electrophoresis. RESULTS: Tumours showing MSI increased from 16% in spontaneously arising tumours to 23% (P = 0.014) in X-ray-induced tumours and rising again to 83% (P << 0.001) in neutron-induced tumours. X-ray-induced Acute Myeloid Leukaemias (AML) had a higher level of mono-nucleotide instability (45%) than di-nucleotide instability (37%). Fifty percent of neutron-induced tumours were classified as MSI-high for mono-nucleotide markers and 10% for di-nucleotide markers. Distribution of MSI varied in the different tumour types and did not appear random. CONCLUSIONS: Exposure to ionising radiation, especially neutrons, promotes the development of MSI in mouse tumours. MSI may therefore play a role in mouse radiation tumourigenesis, particularly following high Linear Energy Transfer (LET) exposures. MSI events, for a comparable panel of genome-wide markers in different tissue types, were not randomly distributed throughout the genome.

A novel method for biodosimetry.

Accurate methods for measuring the biological effects of radiation are critical for estimating an individual's health risk from radiation exposure. We investigated the feasibility of using radiation-induced mutations in repetitive DNA sequences to measure genetic damage caused by radiation exposure. Most repetitive sequences are in non-coding regions of the genome and alterations in these loci are usually not deleterious. Thus, mutations in non-coding repetitive sequences might accumulate, providing a stable molecular record of DNA damage caused by all past exposures. To test this hypothesis, we screened repetitive DNA sequences to identify the loci most sensitive to radiation-induced mutations and then investigated whether these mutations were stable in vivo over time and after multiple exposures. Microsatellite repeat markers were identified that exhibited a linear dose response up to 1 Gy of 1 GeV/nucleon 56Fe ions and 137Cs gamma rays in mouse and human cells. Short tandem repeats on the Y chromosome and mononucleotide repeats on autosomal chromosomes exhibited significant increases in mutations at >or= 0.5 Gy of 56Fe ions with frequencies averaging 4.3-10.3 x 10(-3) mutations/locus/Gy/cell, high enough for direct detection of mutations in irradiated cells. A significant increase in radiation-induced mutations in extended mononucleotide repeats was detectible in vivo in mouse blood and cheek samples 10 and 26 weeks after radiation exposure and these mutations were additive over multiple exposures. This study demonstrates the feasibility of a novel method for biodosimetry that is applicable to humans and other species. This new approach should complement existing methods of biodosimetry and might be useful for measuring radiation exposure in circumstances that are not amenable to current methods.

Comparison of the microsatellite instability analysis system and the Bethesda panel for the determination of microsatellite instability in colorectal cancers.

Microsatellite instability (MSI) analysis of colorectal cancers is clinically useful to identify patients with hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC) caused by germline mutations of mismatch repair genes. MSI status may also predict cancer response/resistance to certain chemotherapies. We evaluated the MSI Analysis System (Promega Corp.; five mononucleotide and two pentanucleotide repeats) and compared the results to the Bethesda panel, which interrogates five microsatellite loci recommended by the 1997 National Cancer Institute-sponsored MSI workshop (three dinucleotide and two mononucleotide repeats). Thirty-four colorectal cancers were analyzed by both assays. The overall concordance between the two assays was 85% (29 of 34). There was complete concordance between the two assays for all of the MSI-high (11 of 11) and microsatellite stable (MSS; 18 of 18) cases. In the 11 MSI-high cases, all 5 of the mononucleotide loci in the MSI Analysis System demonstrated shifted alleles (100% sensitivity), and each shift resulted in products that were smaller in size than the germline alleles. All (5 of 5) of the cases interpreted as MSI-low by the Bethesda assay were interpreted as MSS by the MSI Analysis System. Our results suggest that the MSI Analysis System is generally superior and may help resolve cases of MSI-low into either MSI-high or MSS.