PURPOSE Histologically positive bronchial margins after resection for non-small cell lung cancer are associated with shortened patient survival due to local recurrence. We hypothesized that DNA promoter hypermethylation changes at bronchial margins could be detected in patients with no histological evidence of malignancy and that they would reflect epigenetic events in the primary tumor. EXPE...

Ovarian cancer is a fatal gynecological cancer and a major cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. The main limitation to a successful treatment for ovarian cancer is the development of drug resistance to combined chemotherapy. Tumor suppressor genes (TSGs) are wild-type alleles of genes which play regulatory roles in diverse cellular activities, and whose loss of function contributes to t...

PURPOSE To investigate the prevalence and potential clinical significance of epigenetic aberrations in neuroblastoma (NB). EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN The methylation status of 11 genes that are frequently epigenetically inactivated in adult cancers was assayed in 13 NB cell lines. The prevalence of RASSF1A and TSP-1 methylation was also analyzed in 56 NBs and 5 ganglioneuromas by methylation-specifi...

OBJECTIVE DNA methylation is an important epigenetic modification with tumor suppressor gene silencing in cancer. The mechanisms underlying DNA methylation patterns are still poorly understood. This study aims to evaluate the potential value of FOXA1 for controlling gene CpG island methylation in breast cancer. METHODS FOXA1 was down-regulated by transfection with siRNA and up-regulated by tr...

A large variety of biological processes is mediated by stimulation of the receptor tyrosine kinase MET. Screening a mouse embryo cDNA library, we were able to identify several novel, putative intracellular TPR/MET-substrates: SNAPIN, DCOHM, VAV-1, Sorting nexin 2, Death associated protein kinase 3, SMC-1, Centromeric protein C, and hTID-1. Interactions as identified by yeast two-hybrid analysis...

Staging and pathological grading are useful, but imperfect predictors of recurrence in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Accordingly, molecular biomarkers that predict the risk of recurrence are necessary to improve clinical outcomes. The methylation statuses of the promoters of 11 tumor-related genes (p16, RASSF1A, E-cadherin, H-cadherin, MGMT, DAPK, DCC, COL1A2, TAC1, SST, and GA...

Squamous cell carcinomas of head and neck (HNSCC) are a result of multiple genetic and epigenetic alterations. Epigenetic inactivation of tumor suppressor genes is an important event in head and neck carcinogenesis. Here we analyzed the promoter methylation of 15 genes (RASSF1A, p16, MGMT, DAPK, RARbeta, MLH1, CDH1, GSTP1, RASSF2, RASSF4, RASSF5, MST1, MST2, LATS1, LATS2) in 54 HNSCC and in mat...

Dynamic regulation of cytoskeletal contractility through phosphorylation of the nonmuscle Myosin-II regulatory light chain (MRLC) provides an essential source of tension for shaping epithelial tissues. Rho GTPase and its effector kinase ROCK have been implicated in regulating MRLC phosphorylation in vivo, but evidence suggests that other mechanisms must be involved. Here, we report the identifi...