NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A polymorphism in the E-cadherin gene promoter is associated with an increased risk of hereditary prostate cancer, according to a report in the April 10th International Journal of Cancer.
A C/A short nucleotide polymorphism in the promoter region of the E-cadherin gene at -160 base pairs relative to the transcriptional start site is associated with a 68% decrease in transcription, the authors explain, and loss of E-cadherin expression is associated with transition to the invasive phenotype in various malignancies.
Dr. Henrik Groenberg from Umea University, Sweden and colleagues used three population-based epidemiologic studies including 1036 prostate cancer cases and 669 controls to investigate whether -160C/A polymorphism in the E-cadherin gene promoter is associated with prostate cancer in men with or without a family history of the disease.
Genotype frequencies did not differ between sporadic or familial (two close relatives) prostate cancer cases and unaffected controls, the authors report, though there was a moderate increase in A-allele heterozygotes among familial prostate cancer cases.
In contrast, there were significantly higher proportions of heterozygotes and A-allele homozygotes among hereditary (three or more close relatives) prostate cancer patients than among unaffected controls, the report indicates.
A-allele heterozygotes were 70% and rare homozygotes (AA) were 160% more likely than common homozygotes to have hereditary prostate cancer, the researchers note.
“Our results suggest that the -160C/A polymorphism in the promoter of the E-cadherin gene is responsible for a proportion of hereditary prostate cancer, but not sporadic prostate cancer, in the Swedish population,” the authors conclude. “This polymorphism could be considered a low-penetrant gene explaining a proportion of the aggregation of prostate cancer seen in families.”
“It is too early to test [routinely] for genetic polymorphisms in E-cadherin gene,” Dr. Groenberg told Reuters Health. “We cannot say more about the importance of this finding until we have done further analyses of other genetic variations in the genes and replicate it in an independent population.”
“Family history is an important risk factor for prostate cancer, and men with two or more relatives should ask their physician for routine PSA check-ups,” Dr. Groenberg added.
Source: Int J Cancer 2004;109:348-352. [ Google search on this article ]
MeSH Headings:Neoplasms: Neoplastic Syndromes, Hereditary: DiseasesCopyright © 2002 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.
