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Role of the tumor suppressor gene Brca1 in genetic stability and mammary gland tumor formation

Oncogene volume 19, pages 1059–1064 (2000)Cite this article

Abstract

Germline mutations in the tumor suppressor BRCA1 predispose women to breast and ovarian cancers. Current evidence demonstrates that mutations in BRCA1 do not directly result in tumor formation, but instead cause genetic instability, subjecting cells to high risks of malignant transformation. In an animal model in which Brca1 is mutated specifically in mammary epithelium, tumorigenesis occurs in mutant glands at low frequency after a long latency. Notably, introduction of a p53-null allele significantly enhanced mammary gland tumor formation in Brca1 conditional mutant mice. These results are consistent with a model that Brca1 is a caretaker gene, whose absence causes genetic instability and triggers further alterations, including inactivation of tumor suppressor genes and/or activation of oncogenes, leading to tumor formation.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank K Wagner for helpful discussion and SG Brodie and M Weinstein for critical reading of the manuscript.

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  1. Genetics of Development and Disease Branch, 10/9N105, National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, Maryland, USA

    Chu-Xia Deng & Frank Scott

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Deng, CX., Scott, F. Role of the tumor suppressor gene Brca1 in genetic stability and mammary gland tumor formation. Oncogene 19, 1059–1064 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.onc.1203269

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