J.Jpn. Surg. Soc.. 99(7): 457-462, 1998

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Feature topic

MESSENGER RNA EXPRESSION OF P21 ^WAF1/CIP1 IN COLORECTAL CARCINOMA TISSUES

p21^WAF1/ClP1 is a potent,tight-binding inhibitor of Cdks which is induced by the wild-type p53 gene. We examined p21^WAF1/ClP1 mRNA expression in 16 surgically excised human colorectal tumor and nontumor tissues using Northern blot analysis with reference to the identification of p53 gene mutation. p53 gene mutation was detected in six tumor tissues but not in the other 10 using the PCR-SSCP method. The p21^WAF1/ClP1 mRNA level was lower in tumor tissues than in the corresponding nontumor tissues. The mean expression level of p21^WAF1/ClP1 mRNA was lower in tissues in which the p53 gene mutation was detected than in those in which it was not, although the difference was not significant. The relative p21^WAF1/ClP1 mRNA expression level was significantly higher in the tumors with llver metastases than in those without. These results suggest that the p 21^WAF1/ClP1 mRNA expression level, which might be a indicator of colorectal cancer malignacy, is suppressed in human colorectal tumor tissues compared with the corresponding nontumor tissues and that the wild-type p 53 gene is one of the factors inducing p21^WAF1/ClP1 mRNA expression.

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