Adenomatous Polyposis Coli Methylation Research Articles

Wnt/β-catenin Signaling in Endometrioid Endometrial Cancer and Precursor Lesions

Endometrioid endometrial carcinoma (EEC) is most common invasive malignancy of female genital tract. In spite of advances in diagnosis and treatment, incidence of EEC has been rising because of increasing aging population and prevalence of obesity. Therefore, there is need of research exploring the underlying molecular mechanism of EEC and its precursors. Wnt/ β-catenin signaling are involved in the progression and invasion of EEC. However, the potential role of Wnt/ β-catenin signaling and its effectors in endometrial cancer and precursor lesions remains to be investigated. In the present study a total of 95 samples of endometrial biopsies were assessed histopathologically along with β-catenin expression by immunohistochemistry and promoter methylation of adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene by bisulfite method. Women age ranged from 35 to 70 years whose endometrial biopsy and resected samples were obtained. Expression of β-catenin was observed in 28/39; 72% of EEC, 23/37; 62% of precancer cases and 4/19; 21% of normal proliferative endometrium. APC promoter was completely unmethylated in all controls (14/14) and precancer (10/10) groups, however, only one case (1/13, 8%) of cancer was methylated. The present study showed that expression of β-catenin was upregulated in EEC and precursor lesions suggesting involvement of Wnt/ β-catenin signaling from an early stage of development of cancer from precancer. The information might offer a potential therapeutic target for EEC and could also be used as a screening tool in endometrial hyperplasia (EH) cases for detecting potentially precancerous lesions.

Clinical significance of SPOP and APC gene alterations in colorectal cancer in Indian population.

Speckle-Type Poz Protein (SPOP) involved in the regulation of proteasome-mediated degradation of several oncoproteins, resulting in cancer initiation and progression. Mutations in Adenomatous Polyposis Coli (APC) gene is reported in most sporadic and hereditary colorectal cancer (CRC). Identifying the cellular changes involved in carcinogenesis when APC is mutated is an important issue that needs attention. The tumor suppressive function of SPOP and APC has long been a major focus in the research field of colorectal cancer. However, the clinical significance of SPOP and APC gene alteration in CRC has not been established to date. Mutational analysis was performed by single-strand conformational polymorphism followed by Sanger sequencing, methylation status by methylation-specific PCR, and protein expression by immunohistochemistry on 142 tumor tissues along with their adjacent non-cancerous specimens. The overall survival (OS) and recurrence free survival (RFS) were estimated by Kaplan-Meier Curve. Mutation rates of APC and SPOP gene were 2.8% and 11.9% while that of promoter hypermethylation were 37% and 47%, respectively. The grade of differentiation and Lymph node metastasis were significantly correlated with APC methylation pattern (p ≤ 0.05). The down regulation of APC was more often seen in colonic cancer compared to rectal cancer (p = 0.07) and more commonly in T3-4 depth of invasion (p = 0.07) and in patients without lymphovascular and perineural invasion (p = 0.007, p = 0.08 respectively). The median overall survival and recurrence free survival (RFS) was 67 & 36months while 3-yr and 5-yr OS and RFS were 61.1% & 56.4% and 49.2% & 44.8%, respectively. APC promoter methylation had a better overall survival (p = 0.035) while loss of SPOP expression had a worse survival (p = 0.09). Our findings reveal high percentage of SPOP gene mutations in CRC. A significant link is found between promoter hyper methylationand protein expression in all mutant cases of APC and SPOP, suggesting that both genes may be associated in the development of colorectal cancer in people of Indian decent. Hypermethylation of APC gene and loss of SPOP expression have shown an association with disease prognosis and could be further studied looking at its potential role in planning adjuvant treatment in CRC patients.

Gastric Xanthelasma, Microsatellite Instability and Methylation of Tumor Suppressor Genes in the Gastric Mucosa: Correlation and Comparison as a Predictive Marker for the Development of Synchronous/Metachronous Gastric Cancer.

A predictive marker for the development of synchronous/metachronous gastric cancer (GC) would be highly desirable in order to establish an effective strategy for endoscopic surveillance. Herein, we examine the significance of gastric xanthelasma (GX) and molecular abnormalities for the prediction of synchronous/metachronous GC. Patients (n = 115) were followed up (range, 12–122; median, 55 months) in whom the presence of GX and molecular alterations, including microsatellite instability (MSI) and methylation of human mutL homolog 1 (hMLH1), cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2A (CDKN2A) and adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) genes, had been confirmed in non-neoplastic gastric mucosa when undergoing endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for early GC. At the start of surveillance, the numbers of positive subjects were as follows: GX, 59 (51.3%); MSI, 48 (41.7%); hMLH1, 37 (32.2%); CDKN2A, 7 (6.1%); APC, 18 (15.7%). After ESD treatment, synchronous/metachronous GCs occurred in patients with the following positive factors: GX, 16 (27.1%); MSI, 7 (14.6%); hMLH1, 6 (16.2%); CDKN2A, 3 (42.9%); APC, 3 (16.7%). The presence of GX had no significant relationship to positivity for MSI or methylation of hMLH1, CDKN2A or APC. GX was significantly (p = 0.0059) and independently (hazard ratio, 3.275; 95% confidence interval, 1.134–9.346) predictive for the development of synchronous/metachronous GC, whereas those genetic alterations were not predictive. GX is a simple and powerful marker for predicting the development of synchronous or metachronous GC.

Correlation between the methylation of APC gene promoter and colon cancer.

The present study was planned to explore the correlation between the methylation of APC (adenomatous polyposis coli) and colon carcinogenesis. Colon cancer tissues and tumor-adjacent normal tissues of 60 colon cancer patients (who received surgical operation in our hospital from January 2012 to December 2014) were collected. SW1116 cells in human colon cancer tissues were selected for culturing. 5-aza-2c-deoxycytidine (5-aza-dC) was utilized as an inhibitor of the methylation for APC gene. Methylation specific PCR (MSP) was utilized for detection of APC methylation in SW1116 cells. The MTT and Transwell assays were performed to detect the effect of the methylation of APC gene on the proliferation and invasive abilities of SW1116 cells. The correlation between the methylation of APC gene and pathological parameters of colon cancer patients was analyzed. MSP results revealed that 41 cases (68.33%) showed methylation of APC gene in colon cancer tissues. No methylation of APC gene was found in tumor-adjacent normal tissues. 5-aza-dC was able to inhibit the methylation of APC gene in SW1116 cells. APC gene methylation was correlated with tumor size, differentiation degree, lymph node metastasis and Dukes staging. In conclusion, the levels of the methylation of APC in colon cancer tissues and SW1116 cells are relatively high. The methylation of APC promoted the proliferation and invasion abilities of SW1116 cells. Furthermore, methylation is correlated with a variety of clinicopathological features of colon cancer patients.

Short stature homeobox 2 methylation as a potential noninvasive biomarker in bronchial aspirates for lung cancer diagnosis

Gene methylation has been frequently observed in lung cancer. However, the use of methylated genes in bronchial aspirates of patients with lung cancer remains to be evaluated. The purpose of this study was to analyze whether the detection of genes with aberrant promoter methylation can be useful noninvasive biomarkers in bronchial aspirates from lung cancer. We found that the methylation status of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2A (P16), Ras association domain family 1 isoform (RASSF1A), adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) and short stature homeobox 2 (SHOX2) genes was significantly correlated with lung cancer in bronchial aspirates. The P16, RASSF1A and APC methylation had a bad diagnostic effect in bronchial aspirates of patients with lung cancer compared with non-tumor controls (P16: sensitivity = 0.26, specificity = 0.99, area under the curve (AUC) = 0.67; RASSF1A: sensitivity = 0.40, specificity = 0.99, AUC = 0.66; APC: sensitivity = 0.17, specificity = 0.98, AUC = 0.65). The pooled sensitivity, specificity, and AUC of the SHOX2 methylation were 0.75, 0.94, and 0.94, respectively. Moreover, when squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) was compared to adenocarcinoma (AC), the SHOX2 gene had a significantly higher methylation rate in SCC than in AC (P < 0.001). Methylated P16, RASSF1A, APC and retinoic acid receptor beta2 (RARβ2) genes had similar frequencies in these two histotypes (P > 0.1). Our findings suggest that methylated SHOX2 gene could be a specific and potential noninvasive biomarker using bronchial aspirates for lung cancer diagnosis, especially for SCC.

APC hypermethylation for early diagnosis of colorectal cancer: a meta-analysis and literature review.

Adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) promoter hypermethylation has been frequently observed in colorectal cancer (CRC). The association between APC promoter methylation and clinicopathological significance in CRC is under investigation. We performed a meta-analysis to quantitatively evaluate the significance of APC methylation in CRC. The study included a total of 24 articles and 2025 CRC patients. The frequency of APC promoter hypermethylation was significantly higher in colorectal adenoma than in normal colorectal tissue, OR was 5.76, 95% CI, 2.45-13.56; p<0.0001, I2=0%. APC promoter more frequently hypermethylated in CRC stage I compared to normal colorectal tissue, OR was 13.42, 95% CI, 3.66-49.20; p<0.0001, I2=31%. The risk of incidence of CRC was significantly correlated to APC promoter hypermethylation, pooled OR was 9.80, 95%CI, 6.07-15.81; p<0.00001, I2=43%. APC methylation was not associated with grade, stage of CRC as well as tumor location, patients’ gender, and smoking behavior. The results indicate that APC promoter hypermethylation is an early event in carcinogenesis of CRC, could be a valuable diagnostic marker for early-stage CRC. APC methylation is not significantly associated with overall survival in patients with CRC. APC is a potential drug target for development of personalized treatment.

APC promoter is frequently methylated in pancreatic juice of patients with pancreatic carcinomas or periampullary tumors.

Early detection of pancreatic and periampullary neoplasms is critical to improve their clinical outcome. The present authors previously demonstrated that DNA hypermethylation of adenomatous polyposis coli (APC), histamine receptor H2 (HRH2), cadherin 13 (CDH13), secreted protein acidic and cysteine rich (SPARC) and engrailed-1 (EN-1) promoters is frequently detected in pancreatic tumor cells. The aim of the present study was to assess their prevalence in pancreatic juice of carcinomas of the pancreas and periampullary area. A total of 135 pancreatic juices obtained from 85 pancreatic cancer (PC), 26 ampullary carcinoma (AC), 10 intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN) and 14 chronic pancreatitis (CP) patients were analyzed. The methylation status of the APC, HRH2, CDH13, SPARC and EN-1 promoters was analyzed using methylation specific-melting curve analysis (MS-MCA). Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (KRAS) mutations were also tested with allele-specific quantitative polymerase chain reaction amplification. Out of the 5 promoters analyzed, APC (71%) and HRH2 (65%) were the most frequently methylated in PC juice. APC methylation was also detected at a high frequency in AC (76%) and IPMN (80%), but only occasionally observed in CP (7%). APC methylation had a high sensitivity (71-80%) for all types of cancer analyzed. The panel (where a sample scored as positive when ≥2 markers were methylated) did not outperform APC as a single marker. Finally, KRAS detection in pancreatic juice offered a lower sensitivity (50%) and specificity (71%) for detection of any cancer. APC hypermethylation in pancreatic juice, as assessed by MS-MCA, is a frequent event of potential clinical usefulness in the diagnosis of pancreatic and periampullary neoplasms.

Methylation status of the APC and RASSF1A promoter in cell-free circulating DNA and its prognostic role in patients with colorectal cancer.

DNA methylation is the most frequent epigenetic alteration. Using methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP), the methylation status of the adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) and Ras association domain family 1 isoform A (RASSF1A) genes was examined in cell-free circulating DNA from 155 plasma samples obtained from patients with early and advanced colorectal cancer (CRC). APC and RASSF1A hypermethylation was frequently observed in both early and advanced disease, and was significantly associated with a poorer disease outcome. The methylation status of the APC and RASSF1A promoters was investigated in cell-free DNA of patients with CRC. Using MSP, the promoter methylation status of APC and RASSF1A was examined in 155 blood samples obtained from patients with CRC, 88 of whom had operable CRC (oCRC) and 67 had metastatic CRC (mCRC). The frequency of APC methylation in patients with oCRC was 33%. Methylated APC promoter was significantly associated with older age (P=0.012), higher stage (P=0.014) and methylated RASSF1A status (P=0.050). The frequency of APC methylation in patients with mCRC was 53.7%. In these patients, APC methylation was significantly associated with methylated RASSF1A status (P=0.016). The frequency of RASSF1A methylation in patients with oCRC was 25%. Methylated RASSF1A in oCRC was significantly associated with higher stage (P=0.021). The frequency of RASSF1A methylation in mCRC was 44.8%. Methylated RASSF1A in mCRC was associated with moderate differentiation (P=0.012), high levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (P=0.023) and methylated APC status (P=0.016). Patients with an unmethylated APC gene had better survival in both early (81±5 vs. 27±4 months, P<0.001) and advanced disease (37±7 vs. 15±3 months, P<0.001), compared with patients with methylated APC. Patients with an unmethylated RASSF1A gene had better survival in both early (71±6 vs. 46±8 months, P<0.001) and advanced disease (28±4 vs. 16±3 months, P<0.001) than patients with methylated RASSF1A. The observed significant correlations between APC and RASSF1A promoter methylation status and survival may be indicative of a prognostic role for these genes in CRC, which requires additional testing in larger studies.

Quantitative assessment of the association between APC promoter methylation and breast cancer.

Adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) is an important tumor suppressor gene in breast cancer. However, there were inconsistent conclusions in the association between APC promoter methylation and breast cancer. Hence, we conducted a meta-analysis to quantitatively assess the clinicopathological significance and diagnosis role of APC methylation in breast cancer. In total, 3172 samples from 29 studies were performed in this study. The odds ratio (OR) of APC methylation was 5.92 (95% CI = 3.16–11.07) in breast cancer cases compared to controls,. The APC promoter methylation was associated with cancer stage (OR = 0.47, 95% CI = 0.28–0.80, P = 0.006), lymph node metastases (OR = 0.55, 95% CI = 0.36–0.84, P = 0.005) and ER status (OR = 1.34, 95% CI = 1.03–1.73, P = 0.003) in breast cancer. Furthermore, the sensitivity and specificity for all included studies were 0.444 (95% CI: 0.321–0.575, P < 0.0001) and 0.976 (95% CI: 0.916–0.993, P < 0.0001), respectively. These results suggested that APC promoter methylation was associated with breast cancer risk, and it could be a valuable biomarker for diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of breast cancer.

Promoter methylation of ITF2, but not APC, is associated with microsatellite instability in two populations of colorectal cancer patients.

BackgroundAberrant Wnt signaling activation occurs commonly in colorectal carcinogenesis, leading to upregulation of many target genes. APC (adenomatous polyposis coli) is an important component of the β-catenin destruction complex, which regulates Wnt signaling, and is often mutated in colorectal cancer (CRC). In addition to mutational events, epigenetic changes arise frequently in CRC, specifically, promoter hypermethylation which silences tumor suppressor genes. APC and the Wnt signaling target gene ITF2 (immunoglobulin transcription factor 2) incur hypermethylation in various cancers, however, methylation-dependent regulation of these genes in CRC has not been studied in large, well-characterized patient cohorts. The microsatellite instability (MSI) subtype of CRC, featuring DNA mismatch repair deficiency and often promoter hypermethylation of MutL homolog 1 (MLH1), has a favorable outcome and is characterized by different chemotherapeutic responses than microsatellite stable (MSS) tumors. Other epigenetic events distinguishing these subtypes have not yet been fully elucidated.MethodsHere, we quantify promoter methylation of ITF2 and APC by MethyLight in two case-case studies nested in population-based CRC cohorts from the Ontario Familial Colorectal Cancer Registry (n = 330) and the Newfoundland Familial Colorectal Cancer Registry (n = 102) comparing MSI status groups.ResultsITF2 and APC methylation are significantly associated with tumor versus normal state (both P < 1.0×10-6). ITF2 is methylated in 45.8 % of MSI cases and 26.9 % of MSS cases and is significantly associated with MSI in Ontario (P = 0.002) and Newfoundland (P = 0.005) as well as the MSI-associated feature of MLH1 promoter hypermethylation (P = 6.72×10-4). APC methylation, although tumor-specific, does not show a significant association with tumor subtype, age, gender, or stage, indicating it is a general tumor-specific CRC biomarker.ConclusionsThis study demonstrates, for the first time, MSI-associated ITF2 methylation, and further reveals the subtype-specific epigenetic events modulating Wnt signaling in CRC.

Association of APC, GSTP1 and SOCS1 promoter methylation with the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis.

Studies of the relationships of adenomatous polyposis coli (APC), glutathione-S-transferase P1 (GSTP1) and suppressor of the cytokine signalling 1 (SOCS1) promoter region methylation with the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have yielded inconsistent results. We carried out the current meta-analysis to comprehensively assess the associations between APC, GSTP1 and SOCS1 promoter methylation frequency and the risk of HCC. All relevant reports were identified by searching the PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, CNKI and the Chinese BioMedical Literature databases before 1 March 2014, with restriction to articles published in the Chinese and English languages. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to investigate the rates of APC, GSTP1 and SOCS1 promoter methylation and the risk of HCC. Our meta-analysis identified relationships of APC (12 studies with 592 HCC tumour tissues), GSTP1 (14 studies including 646 HCC tumour tissues) and SOCS1 (11 studies with 512 HCC tumour tissues) promoter methylation with the risk of HCC. Compared with paracancerous tissues, the pooled ORs of APC, GSTP1 and SOCS1 promoter region methylation in HCC cancer tissues were 5.32 (95% CI=2.96-9.56), 5.65, (95% CI=3.41-9.35) and 2.73 (95% CI=1.37-5.44), respectively. Compared with normal liver tissues as controls, the pooled ORs of APC, GSTP1 and SOCS1 promoter region methylation in HCC cancer tissues were 20.43 (95% CI=5.56-75.08), 18.78 (95% CI=5.76-61.19) and 13.00 (95% CI=5.20-32.47), respectively. Subgroup analysis by ethnicity showed that APC, GSTP1 and SOCS1 promoter methylation was associated significantly with the risk of HCC in both Asian and White populations (all P<0.05). Our meta-analysis suggested strong associations between APC, GSTP1 and SOCS1 gene promoter methylation and the risk of HCC, suggesting these to be promising biomarkers for HCC.

Analysis of promoter methylation of four cancer-related genes in samples of cervical tissue with high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions, squamous cell carcinoma in situ, and early squamous cell carcinoma

ObjectivesPromoter methylation of some cancer-related genes may occur in many cancers and also in their precancerous lesions. This study examined adenomatous polyposis coli (APC), glutathione S-transferase, pi-class (GSTP1), prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2), and retinoic acid receptor beta (RARB) genes to assess if they are sensitive methylation markers when used to detect high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL) and early cancer in cervical tissues. Materials and methodsDNA was obtained from 11 HSILs, 20 samples of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in situ (SCIS), and 16 samples of early SCC. The promoter methylation status of the selected genes was assessed using a methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP). ResultsOne SCC sample was noninformative for all four genes. Five of the remaining samples were informative for three genes and 41 samples for all four genes. The rate of detection rate of at least one gene in the SCC group (60.0%, 9/15) was significantly higher than in the HSIL group (27.2%, 3/11) and the SCIS group (15.0%, 3/20) group (p = 0.025). The highest detection rate for PTGS2 was seen in the SCIS group (11.1%, 2/18) with the highest rates for APC (20.0%, 3/15), GSTP1 (7.1%, 1/14), and RARB (28.6%, 4/14) in the SCC group. Only RARB exhibited a significantly higher detection rate in the SCC group than in the other two groups (p = 0.027). ConclusionThe results confirmed that promoter methylation of APC, GSTP1, PTGS2, and RARB is not prevalent in cervical tissues with HSIL or cancer. They are not sensitive methylation markers when used to detect these lesions in cervical tissues.

Prevalence and molecular characterisation of the sessile serrated adenoma in a subset of the Chinese population

AimsThe incidence and mortality rates from right-sided colorectal cancers (CRCs) have not decreased in recent years. It is very likely that a significant proportion of these cancers evolve from undetected...

Quantitative detection of APC/RASSF1A promoter methylation in the plasma of patients with cervical diseases

To quantitatively detect adenomatous polyposis coli(APC) and Ras association domain family 1A( RASSF1A) promoter methylation levels in the plasma of patients with cervical disease and to determine the diagnostic value of the indicators of cervical disease. Preoperative blood samples were collected from 25 cases of healthy women and 118 cases of cervical disease, and tissue samples were also collected from 31 cases of them. The APC/RASSF1A promoter methylation levels of plasma and tissue were determined by duplex real-time quantitative methylation specific PCR (qMSP). Among 31 paired plasma and tissue samples, true negative rate of APC and RASSF1A genes were all 100%, and true positive rate of APC and RASSF1A genes were 3/5 and 7/9, respectively. In 143 cases of plasma samples, total positive rate of APC and (or) RASSF1A methylation was 3% (2/59) for control/low-grade lesions groups and 48% (40/84) for high-grade lesions/tumor groups (P < 0.01) . RASSF1A methylation rate was related to lymph node metastasis and International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage (P < 0.05). The plasma APC/RASSF1A methylation detection may be with some application prospect in the diagnosis of cervical diseases.

Methylation of APC and GSTP1 in Non-Neoplastic Tissue Adjacent to Prostate Tumour and Mortality from Prostate Cancer

BackgroundMarkers that can discriminate between indolent and aggressive prostate tumours are needed. We studied gene methylation in non-neoplastic tissue adjacent to prostate tumour (NTAT) in association with prostate cancer mortality.MethodsFrom two cohorts of consecutive prostate cancer patients diagnosed at one pathology ward in Turin, Italy, we selected 157 patients with available NTAT and followed them up for more than 14 years. We obtained DNA from NTAT in paraffin-embedded prostate tumour tissues and used probe real-time PCR to analyse methylation of the glutathione S-transferase (GSTP1) and adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene promoters.ResultsPrevalence of APC and GSTP1 methylation in the NTAT was between 40 and 45%. It was associated with methylation in prostate tumour tissue for the same two genes as well as with a high Gleason score. The hazard ratio (HR) of prostate cancer mortality was 2.38 (95% confidence interval: 1.23–4.61) for APC methylation, and 2.92 (1.49–5.74) for GSTP1 methylation in NTAT. It changed to 1.91 (1.03–3.56) and 1.60 (0.80–3.19) after adjusting for Gleason score and methylation in prostate tumour tissue. Comparison of 2 vs. 0 methylated genes in NTAT revealed a HR of 4.30 (2.00–9.22), which decreased to 2.40 (1.15–5.01) after adjustment. Results were stronger in the first 5 years of follow-up (adjusted HR: 3.29, 95% CI: 1.27–8.52).ConclusionsChanges in gene methylation are an early event in prostate carcinogenesis and may play a role in cancer progression. Gene methylation in NTAT is a possible prognostic marker to be evaluated in clinical studies.

Abstract 691: Methylation of APC and GSTP1 in non-neoplastic tissue adjacent to prostate tumour and mortality from prostate cancer.

Abstract Prostate cancer is the most common tumour in men in many populations, with a crude incidence of 120-130 per 105 in Europe and the United States. The incidence of prostate cancer has increased dramatically since the introduction of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing at the end of the 1980s; opportunistic PSA-based screening for prostate cancer is widespread, although its ability to decrease mortality is still being debated. We studied gene methylation in non-neoplastic tissue adjacent to prostate tumours (NTAT) in association with prostate cancer mortality, as a marker to discriminate between indolent and aggressive prostate tumours. From two cohorts of consecutive prostate cancer patients diagnosed at one pathology ward in Turin, Italy, we selected 157 patients with available NTAT and followed them up for more than 14 years. We obtained DNA from NTAT in paraffin-embedded prostatic tumour tissues and used probe real-time PCR to analyse methylation of the glutathione S-transferase (GSTP1) and adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene promoters. Prevalence of APC and GSTP1 methylation in the NTAT was between 40 and 45%. It was associated with methylation in prostatic tumour tissue for the same two genes as well as with high Gleason. The hazard ratio (HR) of prostate cancer mortality was 2.16 (1.13-4.13) for APC methylation, and 2.83 (1.42-5.65) for GSTP1 methylation in NTAT. It changed to 1.75 (0.95-3.22) and 1.61 (0.80-3.22) after adjusting for Gleason score and methylation in prostatic tumour tissue. Comparison of 2 vs. 0 methylated genes in NTAT revealed a HR of 3.84 (1.83-8.03), which decreased to 2.12 (1.03-4.37) after adjustment. Results were stronger in the first 5 years of follow-up (adjusted HR: 3.03, 95% CI: 1.20-7.67) and in the biopsy sub-cohort (HR: 5.91, 95% CI: 1.00-35.0). This results show that changes in gene methylation are an early event in prostate carcinogenesis and may play a role in cancer progression. Gene methylation in NTAT is a possible prognostic marker. Citation Format: Chiara Celestina Grasso, Lorenzo Richiardi, Valentina Fiano, Daniela Zugna, Anna Gillio Tos, Luisa Delsedime, Franco Merletti. Methylation of APC and GSTP1 in non-neoplastic tissue adjacent to prostate tumour and mortality from prostate cancer. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 691. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-691

Analysis of the methylation patterns of the p16 INK4A , p15 INK4B , and APC genes in gastric adenocarcinoma patients from a Brazilian population

Gastric cancer is a major public health problem in Pará state, where studies suggest complex genetic and epigenetic profiles of the population, indicating the need for the identification of molecular markers for this tumor type. In the present study, the methylation patterns of three genes [p16 (INK4A), p15 (INK4B), and adenomatous polyposis coli (APC)] were assessed in patients with gastric adenocarcinoma from Pará state in order to identify possible molecular markers of gastric carcinogenesis. DNA samples from tumoral and non-tumoral gastric tissues were modified with sodium bisulfite. A fragment of the promoter region of each gene was amplified and sequenced, and samples with more than 20 % of methylated CpG sites were considered hypermethylated. The correlation between the methylation pattern of the selected genes and the MTHFR C677T polymorphism, as well as the relationship between APC and CDH1 methylation, were evaluated. The results suggest that APC hypermethylation is an age-specific marker of gastric carcinogenesis, and the concordance of this event with CDH1 hypermethylation suggests that the Wnt pathway has an important role in gastric carcinogenesis. While the hypermethylation pattern of p15 (INK4B) seems to be an earlier event in this type of tumor, the hypomethylated status of this gene seems to be correlated to the C677T MTHFR TT genotype. On the other hand, the observed pattern of p16 (INK4A) hypermethylation suggests that this event is a good marker for the gastric cancer pathway in the Pará state population.

APC gene hypermethylation and prostate cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is a worldwide disease that affects a large number of males. Although prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening is used, the specificity is limited. This study analyzes the sensitivity and specificity of adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) methylation for PCa detection in body fluids and tissues. Combining search results from PubMed and Embase, 19 studies were included, 5 involving body fluids and 14 involving prostate tissue, with 2344 subjects. In body fluid subgroups, the pooled sensitivity and specificity was 0.53 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.28-0.78) and 0.92 (95% CI: 0.86-0.95), respectively. From tissue studies, the results presented as 0.84 (95% CI: 0.70-0.92) and 0.91 (95% CI: 0.77-0.97). To confirm the results, we conducted a further analysis by removing studies which introduced high heterogeneity due to the type of cases and controls. The same degree of sensitivity and specificity was presented in two subgroups (urine: sensitivity 0.46, 95% CI: 0.39-0.53; specificity 0.87, 95% CI: 0.64-0.96; tissue: sensitivity 0.87, 95% CI: 0.72-0.94; specificity 0.89, 95% CI: 0.68-0.97). In addition, analysis of the interaction between APC methylation and PCa showed strong association in the whole data set (odds ratio (OR)=24.91, 95% CI: 12.86-48.24, I(2)=72.5%). Pooling the same two main subgroups (tissue/fluid) gave a pooled OR of 33.54 (95% CI: 14.88-75.59; I(2)=70.7%) and 8.20 (95% CI: 2.84-23.74, I(2)=64.2%), respectively. From this study, the results suggest that APC promoter methylation may be the potential testing for PCa diagnosis and provide a new viewpoint in the treatment of PCa.

Pyrosequencing Analysis ofAPCMethylation Level in Human Prostate Tissues: A Molecular Marker for Prostate Cancer

PurposeEpigenetic alterations such as abnormal DNA methylation are associated with many human cancers. Differences in methylation patterns between neoplastic and normal cells can be used to detect cancer. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of detecting Adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) hypermethylation by quantitative pyrosequencing for discriminating between normal and prostate cancer (PCa) cells and for predicting tumor behaviors.Materials and MethodsA total of 218 human prostate tissues obtained from our institute were assessed: 106 specimens of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and 112 specimens of PCa. The methylation status of APC was analyzed by quantitative pyrosequencing. The association between the APC methylation level and clinicopathological parameters was explored.ResultsThe level of APC methylation was significantly higher in PCa specimens than in BPH specimens (33.3%±20.7% vs. 1.3%±1.8%, p<0.001). The sensitivity and specificity of APC methylation status in discriminating between PCa and BPH reached 89.3% and 98.1%, respectively. Similar results were obtained after stratification by stage, Gleason score, and prostate-specific antigen level. The APC methylation level correlated positively with Gleason score (p trend=0.016). There was no association between the APC methylation level and the PSA level or staging.ConclusionsOur results demonstrate that APC methylation is associated with PCa and its aggressive tumor features.

Analysis of APC and IGFBP7 promoter gene methylation in Swedish and Vietnamese colorectal cancer patients

The tumour suppressor gene adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) is a key component that drives colorectal carcinogenesis. The reported DNA methylation in the promoter of APC varies greatly among studies of colorectal cancer (CRC) in different populations. Insulin-like growth factor binding protein 7 (IGFBP7), also known as IGFBP-related protein 1 (IGFBP-rP1), is expressed in various tissue types, including the lung, brain, prostate and gastrointestinal tract, and has been suggested to play a tumour suppressor role against colorectal carcinogenesis. Studies have indicated that IGFBP7 is inactivated by DNA methylation in human colon, lung and breast cancer. In the present study, we used the methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction to study the methylation status of the APC and IGFBP7 gene promoters in cancerous and paired normal tissue to evaluate its impact on clinical factors and association with ethnicity, represented by Swedish and Vietnamese CRC patients. We also investigated the distribution of CpG islands and the CpG dinucleotide density of each CpG island in the regions which were the subject of our investigation. Overall, normal tissue from Swedish patients exhibited a significantly higher frequency of IGFBP7 gene methylation in comparison with that of Vietnamese patients. Moreover, a significantly higher number of cancer tissues from Vietnamese individuals showed higher levels of methylation versus the paired normal tissue compared with that of Swedish patients. When we studied the methylation in cancer compared with the matched normal tissue in individuals, we found that a significantly higher number of Vietnamese patients had a higher degree of IGFBP7 gene methylation in cancer versus matched normal tissue in comparison with Swedish patients. Taken together, our results suggest that the methylation of the APC and IGFBP7 gene promoter region in cancerous tissue, in combination with the predominance of methylation in normal tissue, may serve as a prognostic factor in CRC patients.