Ae. Peaston et al., ABSENCE OF MEN2A-TYPE OR 2B-TYPE RET MUTATIONS IN PRIMARY NEUROBLASTOMA TUMOR-TISSUE, Molecular and cellular probes, 12(4), 1998, pp. 239-242
Citations number
21
Categorie Soggetti
Biology,"Biochemical Research Methods","Biothechnology & Applied Migrobiology","Cell Biology
Specific germline mutations in the RET proto-oncogene predispose to th
e familial cancer syndromes: multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) types
2A and 2B, and familial medullary thyroid carcinoma. Expression of the
RET receptor tyrosine kinase is tightly restricted to tumours of neur
al crest origin, such as neuroblastoma, and neuroblastoma has been obs
erved in RET transgenic mice. Neuroblastoma tumour cell lines transfec
ted with the MEN2A RET gene exhibit spontaneous neuritic differentiati
on, whereas MEN2B-type RET transfectants demonstrate altered cell adhe
sion and enhanced metastatic potential. In this study, the authors exa
mined genomic DNA from 26 primary neuroblastoma tumours for MEN2A and
MEN2B RET mutations, using restriction-enzyme digestion of polymerase
chain reaction products as an alternative to direct sequencing. Examin
ation of RET exons 10 (codons 611, 618, 620), 11 (codons 632, 633, 634
) and 16 (codon 918) in all 26 tumours revealed no RET mutations. Take
n together these data suggest that abnormalities of the RET signalling
pathway, rather than oncogenic, MEN2-type RET activation by mutation,
may play a role in neuroblastoma tumorigenesis. (C) 1998 Academic Pre
ss.