Document Type : Research Articles
Authors
1
Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.
2
Department of Medical Genetics, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
3
Hematology, Oncology, and Stem Cell Transplantation Research Center, Shariati Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
4
Eye Research Center, the Five Senses Institute, Rassoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
5
Department of Vaccination, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.
Abstract
Introduction: Breast cancer is a highly diverse disease, and epigenomic alterations, as principle changes in the pathogenesis of breast cancer, have recently been noticed in epimarker research on peripheral blood. Methods: In this study, DNA samples isolated from the white blood cells of 30 breast cancer patients were compared to 30 healthy controls using methylated DNA immunoprecipitation microarray (MeDIP-chip) to determine differentially methylated region as a potential epimarker in cancer and control cases. Results: A total of 1799 differentially methylated regions were identified, including ZNF154, BCL9, and HOXD9, in which significant methylation differences were confirmed in breast cancer patients through a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Differential methylation of the mentioned genes has been reported in different cancer tissues and cell-free DNA, including breast cancer. Methylation of those genes listed in the white blood cells of our young patients not only relates to their importance in the pathogenesis of breast cancer but may also highlight their potential as primary epimarkers that can warrant further evaluation in large cohort studies. It is important to note that methylation alteration in WBC, as well as genetic mutation, can be identified years before cancer development, which emphasizes this issue as a potential screening marker.
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