Chromosomal radiosensitivity in G2-phase lymphocytes identifies breast cancer patients with distinctive tumour characteristics (original) (raw)

Chromosomal radiosensitivity in breast cancer patients: influence of age of onset of the disease

Oncology Reports

The age dependency of onset of the disease on chromosomal radiosensitivity of an unselected group of breast cancer patients (n=100) was investigated and compared to a group of healthy women (n=100). The chromosomal radiosensitivity was assessed with the G2 and the G0 micro-nucleus (MN) assay. For the G2 assay lymphocytes were irradiated in vitro with a dose of 0.4 Gy 60Co gamma-rays after 70 h incubation and chromatid breaks were scored in 50 metaphases. For the G0 MN assay lymphocytes were exposed in vitro to 3.5 Gy 60Co gamma-rays at low dose rate (LDR). 72 h post-irradiation cultures were arrested and micronuclei were scored in 1000 binucleate cells. The results demonstrated that the group of breast cancer patients was more radiosensitive than a population of healthy women and this with both the G2 and the G0 MN assay. Analyses of the G2 and MN response in different age groups of the breast cancer patients revealed no significant differences in mean G2 and MN scores and suggest t...

Chromosomal radiosensitivity in breast cancer patients with a known or putative genetic predisposition

British Journal of Cancer, 2002

The chromosomal radiosensitivity of breast cancer patients with a known or putative genetic predisposition was investigated and compared to a group of healthy women. The chromosomal radiosensitivity was assessed with the G2 and the G0micronucleus assay. For the G2 assay lymphocytes were irradiated in vitro with a dose of 0.4 Gy 60 Co g-rays after 71 h incubation, and chromatid breaks were scored in 50 metaphases. For the micronucleus assay lymphocytes were exposed in vitro to 3.5 Gy 60 Co g-rays at a high dose rate or low dose rate. 70 h post-irradiation cultures were arrested and micronuclei were scored in 1000 binucleate cells. The results demonstrated that the group of breast cancer patients with a known or putative genetic predisposition was on the average more radiosensitive than a population of healthy women, and this with the G2 as well as with the high dose rate and low dose rate micronucleus assay. With the G2 assay 43% of the patients were found to be radiosensitive. A higher proportion of the patients were radiosensitive with the micronucleus assay (45% with high dose rate and 61% with low dose rate). No correlation was found between the G2 and the G0-micronucleus chromosomal radiosensitivity. Out of the different subgroups considered, the group of the young breast cancer patients without family history showed the highest percentage of radiosensitive cases in the G2 (50%) as well as in the micronucleus assay (75 -78%).

G 2 chromosomal radiosensitivity and background frequency of sister chromatid exchanges of peripheral blood lymphocytes of breast cancer patients

2012

1Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran 2Department of Radiology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran 3Department of Radiology Technology, Faculty of Para-Medical Sciences, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran 4Department of Genetics, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

The use of IL-2 cultures to measure chromosomal radiosensitivity in breast cancer patients

Mutagenesis, 2004

Enhanced chromosomal radiosensitivity in breast cancer patients has been demonstrated in several studies. To investigate the chromosomal radiosensitivity of lymphocytes in breast cancer patients the G 2 and micronucleus (MN) assays are often used. In these assays blood samples are exposed to ionizing radiation and the number of radiationinduced micronuclei or chromatid breaks are scored. In most studies investigating the in vitro chromosomal radiosensitivity of breast cancer patients the G 2 and MN assays were performed on freshly drawn blood. The disadvantage of working with fresh blood samples is that in most cases only one blood sample can be obtained and that the assay cannot be easily repeated without further blood sampling. To allow repeated testing we propose the use of long-term cultures of T lymphocytes (IL-2 cultures). In this study we therefore investigated whether the radiation-induced MN response in IL-2 cultures was the same as in concordant whole blood cultures. For this study the MN assay (2 Gy) was performed on IL-2 cultures of 11 sensitive breast cancer patients and 20 healthy women. The results demonstrate that the enhanced chromosomal radiosensitivity observed in whole blood cultures of breast cancer patients is not present in IL-2 cultures derived from the same blood samples. Therefore, care has to be taken when IL-2 cultures are used to assess chromosomal radiosensitivity in breast cancer patients.

Assessment of Individual Radiosensitivity in Breast Cancer Patients Using a Combination of Biomolecular Markers

Biomedicines

About 5% of patients undergoing radiotherapy (RT) develop RT-related side effects. To assess individual radiosensitivity, we collected peripheral blood from breast cancer patients before, during and after the RT, and γH2AX/53BP1 foci, apoptosis, chromosomal aberrations (CAs) and micronuclei (MN) were analyzed and correlated with the healthy tissue side effects assessed by the RTOG/EORTC criteria. The results showed a significantly higher level of γH2AX/53BP1 foci before the RT in radiosensitive (RS) patients in comparison to normal responding patients (NOR). Analysis of apoptosis did not reveal any correlation with side effects. CA and MN assays displayed an increase in genomic instability during and after RT and a higher frequency of MN in the lymphocytes of RS patients. We also studied time kinetics of γH2AX/53BP1 foci and apoptosis after in vitro irradiation of lymphocytes. Higher levels of primary 53BP1 and co-localizing γH2AX/53BP1 foci were detected in cells from RS patients a...

TPD52 and NFKB1 gene expression levels correlate with G2 chromosomal radiosensitivity in lymphocytes of women with and at risk of hereditary breast cancer

… journal of radiation …, 2007

Purpose: To evaluate a transcriptomic approach to identify healthy women at increased risk of breast cancer due to G2radiosensitivity and look at transcripts that are differentially expressed between individuals. Materials and methods: We perform the first study to assess the association of G2 radiosensitivity with basal gene expression in cultured T-lymphocytes from 11 women with breast cancer and 12 healthy female relatives using Affymetrix GeneChips. Results: Transcripts associated with radiosensitivity and breast cancer risk were predominantly involved in innate immunity and inflammation, such as interleukins and chemokines. Genes differentially expressed in radiosensitive individuals were more similarly expressed in close family members than in un-related individuals, suggesting heritability of the trait. The expression of tumour protein D52 (TPD52), a gene implicated in cell proliferation, apoptosis, and vesicle trafficking was the most strongly correlated with G2 score while nuclear factor (kappa) -B (NFKB1) was highly inversely correlated with G2 score. NFKB1 is known to be activated by irradiation and its inhibition has been previously shown to increase radiosensitivity. Conclusions: Gene expression analysis of lymphocytes may provide a quantitative measure of radiation response potential and is a promising marker of breast cancer susceptibility.

Topoisomerase II levels and G2 radiosensitivity in T-lymphocytes of women presenting with breast cancer

Mutagenesis, 2012

Previous studies from our laboratory have identified a link between intracellular topoisomerase IIα (topo IIα) levels and chromosomal radiosensitivity, as measured by the frequencies of chromatid breaks in the so-called G2-assay. Lower topo IIα levels were associated with reduced chromosomal radiosensitivity in cultured human cells. These findings supported a model, in which it is proposed that such chromatid breaks are the result of radiation-induced errors made by topoisomerase IIα during decatenation of chromatids. Studies from our and other laboratories, using the G2-assay, have shown that phytohaemagglutinin (PHA)-stimulated peripheral blood T-lymphocytes from 40% of female breast cancer cases show elevated chromatid break frequencies when exposed to a small standard dose of ionizing radiation, i.e. elevated above the 90th percentile of a group of female control samples. In the present study we have used a modified G2-assay to test whether elevated frequency of chromatid breaks in breast cancer cases is linked with elevated intracellular topo IIα level in PHA-stimulated T-lymphocytes, and also whether there is a general correlation between chromosomal radiosensitivity and topo IIα level. Our results confirm previous studies that 40% of breast cancer cases show elevated radiosensitivity as compared with controls. Also, the mean chromatid break frequency in breast cancer cases was significantly higher than in controls (P = 0.0001). We found that the mean topo IIα level in the cohort of breast cancer cases studied was significantly raised, as compared with controls (P = 0.0016), which could indicate a genetic propensity towards a raised intracellular production of topo IIα in these individuals. There was no direct correlation between chromosomal radiosensitivity and topo IIα level for individual samples either in the breast cancer cohort or in controls. However, a comparison between control and breast cancer samples shows a higher mean topo IIα level in breast cancer samples that correlates with the elevated mean chromatid break frequency seen in these patient samples. We found no meaningful correlations between either chromatid break frequency or topo IIα level and either tumour grade or hormone status. We conclude that elevated intracellular topo IIα level is likely to be a significant factor in determining the chromosomal response of stimulated T-lymphocytes from certain breast cancer cases.

Increased Radiosensitivity as an Indicator of Genes Conferring Breast Cancer Susceptibility

Strahlentherapie und Onkologie, 2007

Purpose: This paper briefly summarizes the research on increased radiosensitivity in breast cancer patients measured by the micronucleus test (MNT) and its association to genetic variants in DNA repair genes. More preliminary data are presented on the distribution of chromosomes and chromosome fragments in micronuclei (MN) in order to gain more information on clastogenic and aneugenic effects and better understand the phenotype of increased radiosensitivity. Material and Methods: Reports of relevant studies obtained from a search of PubMed and studies referenced in those reports were reviewed. In four patients with high MN frequency (three cancer patients, one control) and four probands with low MN frequency, the presence of chromosome fragments or whole chromosomes in MN was determined by fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis for chromosomes 1, 7, and 17. Results: An increased MN frequency in breast cancer patients compared to controls has consistently been reported with high significance. Higher MN frequencies were observed in 20-50% of breast cancer patients. Chromosomal fragments of chromosome 17, but not of chromosomes 1 and 7 were more frequent in the probands with high MN frequency than in those with low frequency (p = 0.045).

Chromosomal radiosensitivity during the G2 cell-cycle period of skin fibroblasts from individuals with familial cancer

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 1985

We reported previously that human cells after neoplastic transformation in culture had acquired an increased susceptibility to chromatid damage induced by x-irradiation during the G2 phase of the cell cycle. Evidence suggested that this results from deficient DNA repair during G2 phase. Cells derived from human tumors also showed enhanced G2-phase chromosomal radiosensitivity. Furthermore, skin fibroblasts from individuals with genetic diseases predisposing to a high risk of cancer, including ataxia-telangiectasia, Bloom syndrome, Fanconi anemia, and xeroderma pigmentosum exhibited enhanced G2-phase chromosomal radiosensitivity. The present study shows that apparently normal skin fibroblasts from individuals with familial cancer--i.e., from families with a history of neoplastic disease--also exhibit enhanced G2-phase chromosomal radiosensitivity. This radiosensitivity appears, therefore, to be associated with both a genetic predisposition to cancer and a malignant neoplastic state. ...