Immunohistochemical analysis of BRCA1 expression in normal human buccal cells.

While tumor suppressor properties of BRCA1 are well documented, less is understood concerning the normal function of this protein in healthy adult tissues. We demonstrate here that BRCA1 protein is expressed in human buccal cells. Expression of BRCA1 mRNA transcripts in buccal cells was confirmed by PCR of reverse transcribed RNA.