Metallothionein isoform 3 expression in human skin, related cancers and human skin derived cell cultures

Metallothionein isoform 3 expression in human skin, related cancers and human skin derived cell cultures.

Human skin is a well known target site of inorganic arsenic with effects ranging from hyperkeratosis to dermal malignancies. The current study characterizes the expression of a protein known to bind inorganic, As(3+), metallothionein 3 (MT-3). Expression of this protein was assessed immunohistochemically with a specific MT-3 antibody on human formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded biopsy specimens i...

TP53 mutations in human skin cancers.

The p53 gene (TP53) is mutated in numerous human cancers. We have used it as a molecular target to characterize the induction of mutations in human skin cancers. About 50% of all skin cancers in normal individuals exhibit p53 mutations. This frequency rises to 90% in skin cancers of patients with the DNA-repair deficiency known as xeroderma pigmentosum (XP). These mutations are characterized by...

Structure and expression of two human metallothionein-I isoform genes and a related pseudogene.

Three members of the human metallothionein-I gene family have been cloned and characterized. Two of the genes encode closely related but distinct metallothionein-I subtypes. Both of these genes are functional as shown by their transcription in cultured hepatoblastoma cells and by their ability to render transfected cells resistant to cadmium toxicity. The cotranscription of these nonallelic gen...

Age-related differences in human skin proteoglycans.

Previous work has shown that versican, decorin and a catabolic fragment of decorin, termed decorunt, are the most abundant proteoglycans in human skin. Further analysis of versican indicates that four major core protein species are present in human skin at all ages examined from fetal to adult. Two of these are identified as the V0 and V1 isoforms, with the latter predominating. The other two s...

Basal cell and squamous cell skin cancers.