MOLECULAR-GENETICS AND CYTOGENETICS OF BREAST CARCINOMAS - COMPARISONOF THE 2 METHODS

Molecular genetics and cytogenetics are two different approaches to st udying genetic changes in breast carcinoma. We have used karyotype ana lysis, fluorescence in situ hybridization, and molecular analysis of a llelic imbalance on chromosomes 7q and 16q and on both arms of chromos ome 17, to study 85 breast carcinomas. Twenty-five of these samples ga ve results that could be used to compare the two methods. Sixty-nine c hromosome arms were compared, of which 48 (70%) gave concordant molecu lar and cytogenetical results. Samples were processed for karyotyping both by harvesting directly from the fresh tissue and after selective culture for a few days. Karyotypes among the direct harvest samples ma tched significantly better with the molecular genetics results than ka ryotypes among the cultured cell preparations. (C) Elsevier Science In c., 1996