Regulation of 14-3-3sigma expression in human thyroid carcinoma is epigenetically regulated by aberrant cytosine methylation.

Increased 14-3-3sigma expression has been observed by immunohistochemistry in papillary and anaplastic tumors, but not follicular thyroid cancers. 14-3-3sigma mRNA expression and methylation status was examined in tumor cell lines and primary thyroid tissues using real-time RT-PCR, bisulfite sequencing and methylation-specific PCR. Most of the 27 CpG's in the gene's CpG island were methylated in normal thyroid, TPC-1, NPA, FTC-238 and 2-7, which did not express 14-3-3sigma.

ECM1 expression in thyroid tumors--a comparison of real-time RT-PCR and IHC.

Background: Increased extracellular matrix 1 (ECM1) expression, as determined by real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), has been recently proposed as a novel and independent diagnostic marker for malignant thyroid nodules. However ECM1 protein expression has not been previously evaluated in thyroid tumors. Real-time RT-PCR is not widely available and this has important implications for the widespread use of the expression of this gene for diagnosis.

RIZ1 is epigenetically inactivated by promoter hypermethylation in thyroid carcinoma.

Background: Allelotype studies have suggested that chromosome 1p is frequently lost in thyroid cancers, thus suggesting that there is an important tumor suppressor at this location. RIZ1 (PRDM2), located on 1p36, is a recently described tumor suppressor gene and is a member of the protein methyltransferase superfamily. RIZ1 expression is lost in a variety of tumors, primarily by means of epigenetic mechanisms that involve promoter hypermethylation.