PCR-RFLP STUDIES ON CHROMOSOME 3P IN FORMALDEHYDE-FIXED, PARAFFIN-EMBEDDED CERVICAL-CANCER TISSUES

Loss of heterozygosity (LOH) has been extensively studied on the short arm of chromosome 3, and functional proofs have been obtained definin g a tumor-suppressor locus at 3p21-22. We examined 31 paraffin-embedde d cervical cancer samples for LOH, using 5 PCR-primer pairs, located a round 3p21. Allele loss was found in 19 out of the 27 informative samp les (70%) while 13 out of 23 informative samples (56%) had LOH located at 3p21-22. More of the human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive samples h ad LOH compared to the HPV-negative samples, giving only a weak associ ation between loss of allele and HPV integration. Modifications of the DNA in the formaldehyde-fixed samples were detected, and further stud ies will be required to clarify how such artifacts may affect restrict ion fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) studies on fixed tissues. (C) 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.