Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) may be associated with the response or toxicity to different types of treatment. Although SNP analysis is usually performed on DNA from peripheral blood, formalin fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue is often used for retrospective studies. We analyzed VEGF (-2578C>A, -1498C>T, -1154G>A, -634C>G, +936C>T) and eNOS (+894G>T, -786T>C, VNTR (variable number ...

Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue specimens represent a potential valuable source of samples for clinical research. Since these specimens are banked in hospital archives, large cohorts of samples can be collected in short periods of time which can all be linked with a patients' clinical history. Therefore, the use of FFPE tissue in protein biomarker discovery studies gains interest...

The ability to extract RNA and prepare RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) libraries from Formalin Fixed Paraffin Embedded (FFPE) tissues allows researchers to identify and validate new biomarkers of disease onset, progression, and therapy resistance. However, the typically poor quality of RNA derived from FFPE samples has previously limited use of this tissue source as a resource for transcriptome profil...

MicroRNAs regulate several aspects of tumorigenesis and cancer progression. Most cancer tissues are archived formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE). While microRNAs are a more stable form of RNA thought to withstand FFPE-processing and degradation there is only limited evidence for the latter assumption. We examined whether microRNA profiling can be successfully conducted on FFPE cancer ti...

The molecular classification of glioblastoma (GBM) based on gene expression might better explain outcome and response to treatment than clinical factors. Whole transcriptome sequencing using next-generation sequencing platforms is rapidly becoming accepted as a tool for measuring gene expression for both research and clinical use. Fresh frozen (FF) tissue specimens of GBM are difficult to obtai...

BACKGROUND The use of DNA from archival formalin and paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissue for genetic and epigenetic analyses may be problematic, since the DNA is often degraded and only limited amounts may be available. Thus, it is currently not known whether genome-wide methylation can be reliably assessed in DNA from archival FFPE tissue. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Ovarian tissues, which we...

Genomic instability is a classic hallmark of cancer and genetic disorders. Microarray-based comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) has become the accepted technique for studying DNA sequence copy number alterations. While DNA extracted from freshly frozen tissues is optimal for aCGH analysis, in many cases only formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue material is available. Because DNA...

One of the most widely used methods for clinical sample preservation and archiving is the preparation of formalin-fi xed paraffi n-embedded (FFPE) tissue. Thin sections of FFPE blocks are commonly subjected to histopathology with the remaining sample being archived. These FFPE tissue archives represent a valuable source for retrospective studies of gene expression and mutation analysis. However...

BACKGROUND Archival formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues have limited utility in applications involving analysis of gene expression due to mRNA degradation and modification during fixation and processing. This study analyzed 160 miRNAs in paired snap frozen and FFPE cells to investigate if miRNAs may be successfully detected in archival specimens. RESULTS Our results show that miRN...

The promising results of anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitors have changed the significance of ALK fusions in several types of cancer. These fusions are no longer mere research targets or diagnostic markers, but they are now directly linked to the therapeutic benefit of patients. However, most available tumor tissues in clinical settings are formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE), a...