Comparative investigation of somatic gene mutagenesis and apoptosis in patients with benign, malignant tumors and healthy individuals

Abstract

Flow cytometry evaluation of mutant cell frequency at glycophorin A (GPA) and T-cell receptor (TCR) loci was used to study somatic gene mutagenesis in patients with benign and malignant tumors. The frequencies of the GPA and TCR variant cells were significantly higher in patients with laryngeal cancer before treatment than in healthy controls ( p<0.05). Examination of residents of radionuclide-contaminated Oryol oblast showed significant elevation of the TCR variant frequency in the individuals with benign thyroid tumors as compared to healthy persons. Our results indirectly support the hypothesis that individuals with elevated TCR and/or GPA variant cell scores might belong to a high-risk group potentially prone to the development of neoplasm. Cancer patients displaying decreased levels of radiation-induced in vitro lymphocyte apoptosis were found to have significantly higher frequency of the TCR mutants. Consequently, elevated variant cell frequencies in cancer patients can be a result of accelerated mutational rate or, alternatively, may be due to attenuated efficiency of the elimination of genetically corrupted cells.