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Query: UMLS:C0006142 (breast cancer)
 160,383 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

In search of critical genes in the mechanism of estrogen action in human breast cancer, we previously showed that estrogen stimulates transcription of the c-myc gene in estrogen-dependent (MCF-7) cells. We have now examined the role of c-myc in estrogen-stimulated growth of MCF-7 cells through the use of a synthetic antisense c-myc phosphorothioate oligonucleotide to specifically inhibit expression of the c-myc protein. Estrogen induces a 5-fold increase in c-myc protein expression within 90 min in steroid-deprived cells, as detected by Western blot. Prior exposure of MCF-7 cells to 10 microM c-myc antisense oligonucleotide results in up to 95% inhibition of the c-myc protein expression induced by estrogen. Antisense-myc oligonucleotide inhibits estrogen-stimulated cell growth by up to 75% over 9 days and also exerts a cytostatic effect on the growth of estrogen-independent MDA-MB-231 cells which show relatively high, constitutive expression of c-myc. Sense-myc and antisense-pS2 oligonucleotides have no effect on c-myc protein level or growth in either cell line. These results demonstrate both the specific and durable effects of antisense phosphorothioate oligonucleotides. Furthermore, these results indicate a critical role for c-myc in the growth of breast cancer cells and support the hypothesis that loss of estrogen regulation of this gene may be an important factor in the progression of breast cancer.
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PMID:Inhibition of c-myc expression by phosphorothioate antisense oligonucleotide identifies a critical role for c-myc in the growth of human breast cancer. 185 15

This study documents a biphasic change in the rate of cell cycle progression and proliferation of T-47D human breast cancer cells treated with synthetic progestins, consisting of an initial transient acceleration in transit through G1, followed by cell cycle arrest and growth inhibition. Both components of the response were mediated via the progesterone receptor. The data are consistent with a model in which the action of progestins is to accelerate cells already progressing through G1, which are then arrested early in G1 after completing a round of replication, as are cells initially in other phases of the cell cycle. Such acceleration implies that progestins act on genes or gene products which are rate limiting for cell cycle progression. Increased production of epidermal growth factor and transforming growth factor alpha, putative autocrine growth factors in breast cancer cells, does not appear to account for the initial response to progestins, since although the mRNA abundance for these growth factors is rapidly induced by progestins, cells treated with epidermal growth factor or transforming growth factor alpha did not enter S phase until 5 to 6 h later than those stimulated by progestin. The proto-oncogenes c-fos and c-myc were rapidly but transiently induced by progestin treatment, paralleling the well-known response of these genes to mitogenic signals in other cell types. The progestin antagonist RU 486 inhibited progestin regulation of both cell cycle progression and c-myc expression, suggesting that this proto-oncogene may participate in growth modulation by progestins.
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PMID:Progestins both stimulate and inhibit breast cancer cell cycle progression while increasing expression of transforming growth factor alpha, epidermal growth factor receptor, c-fos, and c-myc genes. 192 31

The c-erbB-2 oncogene is thought to play a relevant role in the development and progression of mammary neoplasia. Using the human breast cancer cell lines T47D and MCF7, we found that the arrest of cell growth induced by a steroid-depleted medium was accompanied by a strong increase of c-erbB-2 mRNA and of the c-erbB-2-encoded p185 protein. The treatment of arrested cells with estrogens was found to resume cell proliferation and to inhibit dramatically c-erbB-2 expression at both mRNA and protein level. The regulation of c-erbB-2 expression was remarkably different from that observed for c-myc, which was strongly stimulated by estrogens, and ras, whose expression was unaffected all through the treatments. In addition, in the normal rat mammary gland undergoing development and differentiation during pregnancy and lactation, p185 expression was detected only in the functionally differentiated tissue. Altogether, our data indicate that the expression of c-erbB-2 is repressed during estrogen-induced proliferation and enhanced during growth arrest and/or differentiation of mammary cells.
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PMID:Inhibition of c-erbB-2 oncogene expression by estrogens in human breast cancer cells. 197 27

One hundred six primary breast cancer samples were analysed for c-erbB2, int-2, and c-myc gene amplification. Surgically confirmed nodal involvement was observed in 42%. Level of gene amplification was studied by Southern and/or slot blot techniques. Amplified c-erbB2 gene sequences were present in 21.5% of all samples. Int-2 was amplified in 13.1% and c-myc was amplified in 10.3%. In a non-parametric test (Kruskal-Wallis) a strong negative association was found between high levels of c-erbB2 amplification and absence of estrogen receptor (ER) (P = .0009) or progesterone receptor (PR) (P = .011) expression. No correlations were found between all or high levels of amplification of each oncogene separately or combined with T, N, grade, multifocality of tumor, or associated carcinoma in situ. There was a trend approaching statistical significance for patients with c-erbB2 amplifications to have positive lymph nodes at surgery (P = 0.09). A somewhat surprising finding however was a very strong association between oncogene amplification and dense lymphocyte infiltration of the tumor (P = .05). This correlation is even stronger when only high levels of amplification are considered, either for each oncogene separately (P = .0048) or in combination (P = .0007). We propose that malignant cell cytokine production may help explain this observation.
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PMID:Oncogene amplification correlates with dense lymphocyte infiltration in human breast cancers: a role for hematopoietic growth factor release by tumor cells? 198 Jan 25

In breast cancer, axillary lymph node invasiveness is the major prognostic factor in predicting relapse and metastasis. Nevertheless, since 30% of node-negative tumors also relapse, it is necessary to develop other independent prognostic factors. Oncogene amplification and the level of cathepsin D (cath-D), an acidic lysosomal protease produced and secreted in excess by breast cancer cells, have been proposed as additional prognostic factors. We have compared the cytosolic cath-D level and the amplification of three oncogenes: c-myc, neu-erb-B-2 and int-2 in 140 primary breast carcinomas and 64 axillary lymph nodes collected in 1987 and 1988 at the Cancer Center of Montpellier (Centre Paul Lamarque). None of the patients had previously received hormonal or chemotherapy. The cath-D concentration was measured with an immunoradiometric assay using monoclonal antibodies. DNA purified from the same samples was analyzed by a standard Southern blotting technique to estimate oncogene amplification. No correlation was found between the level of cath-D in the tumor and node invasiveness. Using a cut-off level of 60 pmol/mg protein, the status of cath-D was not correlated with neu-erb-B-2 and int-2 amplification and only correlated with c-myc amplification (P = 0.011). Both c-myc and cath-D are associated with cell proliferation, induced by estrogens in ER+ breast cancer, and constitutively produced in ER- breast cancer. The level of cath-D was significantly higher in the invaded lymph nodes (P = 0.04) than in the histologically non-invaded ones. Nevertheless, some non-invaded lymph nodes contained a high level of cath-D, as confirmed by immunoperoxidase staining. In conclusion, in breast cancer, a high cytosolic cath-D concentration is more frequent in tumors with c-myc amplification but is dissociated from neu-erb-B-2 or int-2 amplification, suggesting that the determination of these three markers will have an additional prognostic value.
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PMID:Cathepsin D assay in primary breast cancer and lymph nodes: relationship with c-myc, c-erb-B-2 and int-2 oncogene amplification and node invasiveness. 214 10

Previous articles have reported that the c-myb proto-oncogene was activated in various types of tumours of the hematopoietic system suggesting that this gene plays a role in the development of these malignancies. However no studies of the c-myb gene have as yet been performed in solid primary tumours. In the present study we have analysed in breast cancer the c-myb gene with the aim to determine its involvement in tumour progression. Expression of the c-myb oncogene was analysed from 169 carcinoma specimens obtained from untreated patients with non-inflammatory breast cancer (NBC) (112 patients) and inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) (57 patients). A 3.5 kb c-myb transcript band was detected in 108 (64%) tumours. c-myb expression was found to be associated with good prognostic factors (lowest histopathologic grade (P = 0.01), oestrogen and progesterone receptor status (P less than 10(-4)) and pS2 gene expression (P less than 10(-4)) and negatively correlated with breast cancers of poorer prognosis, namely IBC (P = 0.03) and NBC with multiple involved nodes (P = 0.15). Other genes (c-myc, c-erbB2, c-fos and epidermal growth factor receptor) were also studied. The c-myb gene expression was found to be inversely correlated (P less than 0.03) with only c-erbB2 overexpression in NBC. When data were analysed with a logistic regression model using a stepwise procedure, c-myb expression was found to be associated only with the oestrogen receptor status (P less than 10(-4)). In conclusion, our data indicate that analysis of c-myb expression in breast cancer could allow the characterization of a new class of oestrogen-dependent tumours.
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PMID:Strong association between c-myb and oestrogen-receptor expression in human breast cancer. 218 74

The etiology of breast cancer is thought to involve a complex interplay of various factors, among them: genetic alterations. Multiple studies have been made to identify and characterize mutations that frequently occur during tumorigenesis. In human breast cancer, some of these alterations involve implication of proto-oncogenes (c-myc, c-erbB-2 and int-2) that have been shown to contribute to tumorigenesis by using the transgenic mouse model. Loss of heterozygoty represents the other important type of abnormalities that has been frequently observed in breast tumor DNAs; these specific genic deletions could inactivate or remove suppressor genes. In some studies, specific alterations have been associated with some clinical parameters, but have led to numerous controversies. Larger studies would be necessary to confirm some alterations as useful prognostic factors of the post-surgical course of the disease.
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PMID:[Cancer of the breast. Genetic alterations and prognostic factors]. 223 89

Cellular oncogenes appear to be involved in the control of normal cell growth and differentiation. The abnormal activation of these genes in naturally occurring and experimentally induced cancers may have an important role in the expression of the malignant phenotype in cancer cells. Mechanisms for the activation of these genes include chromosomal translocation, point mutation, and DNA amplification. The amplification of specific oncogenes correlates with clinical prognosis in several human malignancies, including breast cancer and neuroblastoma. We examined 21 fresh-frozen human squamous cell carcinomas of the aerodigestive tract for amplification of 10 known cellular oncogenes (c-myc, N-myc, L-myc, N-ras, H-ras, K-ras, erb-B, erb-B2, raf, and int-2), using Southern blotting techniques. Eleven of 21 tumors demonstrated a two-fold to 11-fold amplification of the int-2 oncogene, one member of a family of genes related to basic fibroblast growth factor. Amplification of c-myc, a gene that codes for a DNA-binding protein involved in the regulation of cell growth, was seen in two tumors. None of the other eight genes studied were amplified in any of the tumor specimens.
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PMID:Oncogene amplification in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. 224 38

Xenograft tumours from an oestrogen-dependent human breast cancer cell line MCF-7 have been established and characterised in thymectomised, irradiated female CBA strain mice. There was evidence for selection in xenografts of a subpopulation of MCF-7 cells with an altered pattern of gene expression as measured by mRNA levels compared with the original cells in vitro. Tumorigenicity increased significantly on repeated animal passage but oestrogen dependence was retained. Following injection of the mice with oestrogen, mitosis was induced in the tumour cells with associated increases in thymidine uptake and percentage of cells in S-phase. In accord with these changes, c-myc and p53 expression were increased and TGF-beta was suppressed. Thereafter the expression of the c-myc and p53 genes fell whilst that of the TGF-beta gene was induced as the oestrogenic-stimulus declined. The oestrogen-regulated mRNA pS2 showed a biphasic response to oestrogen and levels declined as the serum oestrogen fell to undetectable levels. This xenograft system demonstrates that changes in transcription of oncogenes, growth factor and oestrogen-regulated genes can be detected in vivo in response to oestrogen. It thus provides an in vivo model for studies of the biochemical and molecular basis for therapeutic manipulation of hormone-sensitive human breast cancer.
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PMID:Gene expression in oestrogen-dependent human breast cancer xenograft tumours. 239 Apr 87

Estrogen induces DNA synthesis to a lesser degree, but with similar kinetics compared to insulin-like growth factors when added to quiescent MCF7 human breast cancer cells. Moreover, this steroid rapidly induces expression of the growth-related c-fos and c-myc protooncogenes. The induction was shown to be a direct effect, independent of protein synthesis. These results demonstrate that no growth factor production is involved in estrogen-induced protooncogene expression, and that these direct effects on gene expression may be an important step in estrogen-induced mitogenesis.
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PMID:Direct effects of estrogen on c-fos and c-myc protooncogene expression and cellular proliferation in human breast cancer cells. 250 74


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