Genome sequencing has revealed two genes involved in a deadly form of ovarian cancer.
Ovarian clear-cell carcinoma is aggressive and difficult to treat. David Huntsman at the British Columbia Cancer Agency in Vancouver, Canada, and his colleagues sequenced protein-coding genes from 18 ovarian clear-cell tumours and found that six had mutations in a gene called ARID1A. The ARID1A protein regulates the coiling of DNA and hence gene expression, and has also been linked to tumour suppression.
Meanwhile, a team led by Kenneth Kinzler, Victor Velculescu and Nickolas Papadopoulos of the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center in Baltimore, Maryland, sequenced protein-coding genes in eight tumours and uncovered mutations in ARID1A and another gene called PPP2R1A. The PPP2R1A protein helps to distribute chromosomes into dividing cells and controls cell growth. A follow-up experiment with 42 tumours showed that 57% had mutations in ARID1A and 7% had mutations in PPP2R1A.
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Cancer biology: Ovarian cancer culprits. Nature 467, 254 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/467254c
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/467254c