Rapid identification of the copy number of α-globin genes by capillary electrophoresis analysis.

Objectives: The current study aimed at the rapid identification of the copy number of α-globin genes for the diagnosis of α-thalassemia.

Design And Methods: To identify the copy number of α-globin genes in α-thalassemia, we developed a novel method using a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in combination with the CE analysis.

Results: The proposed method provides a rapid detection of the common α-globin gene deletions.

The correlation between CpG methylation on promoter and protein expression of E-cadherin in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: Reduction of E-cadherin in most common epithelial tumors relates to metastasis, which results from the silence of E-cadherin by CpG methylation.

Materials And Methods: We examined the E-cadherin expression by immunohistochemical staining and detected methylation by methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP) in 48 primary oral SCC tissues.

Results: The results showed that 41 out of 48 (85.