Aberrant Promoter Hypermethylation of RASSF Family Members in Merkel Cell Carcinoma

Cancers

Antje M. Richter⁴  Tanja Haag⁴  Sara Walesch⁴  Peter Herrmann-Trost⁵  Wolfgang C. Marsch³  Heinz Kutzner¹  Peter Helmbold² 

[1] DermPath, Friedrichshafen D-88048, Germany; E-Mail:;Department of Dermatology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg D-69120, Germany; E-Mail: Peter.;Department of Dermatology, University of Halle, Halle D-06120, Germany; E-Mail:;Institute for Genetics, University of Giessen, Giessen D-35392, Germany; E-Mails:;Institute of Pathology, Halle D-06097, Germany; E-Mail:

关键词: merkel cell;    tumor suppressor;    DNA methylation;    epigenetics;    RASSF;   

DOI  :  10.3390/cancers5041566

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is one of the most aggressive cancers of the skin. RASSFs are a family of tumor suppressors that are frequently inactivated by promoter hypermethylation in various cancers. We studied CpG island promoter hypermethylation in MCC of RASSF2, RASSF5A, RASSF5C and RASSF10 by combined bisulfite restriction analysis (COBRA) in MCC samples and control tissue. We found RASSF2 to be methylated in three out of 43 (7%), RASSF5A in 17 out of 39 (44%, but also 43% in normal tissue), RASSF5C in two out of 26 (8%) and RASSF10 in 19 out of 84 (23%) of the cancer samples. No correlation between the methylation status of the analyzed RASSFs or between RASSF methylation and MCC characteristics (primary versus metastatic, Merkel cell polyoma virus infection, age, sex) was found. Our results show that RASSF2, RASSF5C and RASSF10 are aberrantly hypermethylated in MCC to a varying degree and this might contribute to Merkel cell carcinogenesis.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2013 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.