Aberrant Promoter Methylation of Death-Associated Protein Kinase in Serum DNA from Lung Cancer Patients / 결핵

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Promoter methylation of tumor suppressor genes is one of the key epigenetic changes in many human cancers. The aim of this study was to evaluate the promoter methylation status of the Death-associated protein(DAP) kinase gene, which played an important role in lung cancer, in the serum DNA of primary lung cancer patients. METHODS: This study investigated the aberrant methylation of DAP kinase in the serum of 65 primary lung cancer patients by methylation-specific PCR (MSP). RESULTS: Methylation in the serum was detected in 29 of 65(44.6%) for DAP kinase. There was no statistical association between methylation of DAP kinase and age, smoking history, histologic type, or stage. Methylation of DAP kinase was found more frequently in men (p=0.044). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that the aberrant methylation of the DAP kinase promoter is readily detectable in the serum DNA of lung cancer patients using MSP analysis.