A Hierarchical Machine Learning Model to Discover Gleason Grade-Specific Biomarkers in Prostate Cancer.

(1) Background:One of the most common cancers that affect North American men and men worldwide is prostate cancer. The Gleason score is a pathological grading system to examine the potential aggressiveness of the disease in the prostate tissue. Advancements in computing and next-generation sequencing technology now allow us to study the genomic profiles of patients in association with their different Gleason scores more accurately and effectively.

A role for Drosophila Cyclin J in oogenesis revealed by genetic interactions with the piRNA pathway.

Cyclin J (CycJ) is a poorly characterized member of the Cyclin superfamily of cyclin-dependent kinase regulators, many of which regulate the cell cycle or transcription. Although CycJ is conserved in metazoans its cellular function has not been identified and no mutant defects have been described. In Drosophila, CycJ transcript is present primarily in ovaries and very early embryos, suggesting a role in one or both of these tissues.

Racial differences in oncogene mutations detected in early-stage low-grade endometrial cancers.

Objective: To describe the pattern and frequency of oncogene mutations in white and African American women with endometrial cancer and to determine if racial differences in oncogene mutations exist among women with pathologically similar tumors.

Methods: Patients with endometrial cancer from a large urban hospital were identified through medical records, and representative formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tumor blocks were retrieved. The study sample included 150 patients (84 African Americans) who underwent total abdominal hysterectomy for endometrial cancer.

Frequency and type of epidermal growth factor receptor mutations in African Americans with non-small cell lung cancer.

Background: Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) predict response to tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Mutations occur more commonly in never smokers and East Asians, but there are conflicting reports on the frequency of EGFR mutations in tumors from African Americans.

Methods: Tumors from 67 African American and 77 white participants in previous case-control studies of lung cancer were selected to determine EGFR mutational status.