Detection of deletions and/or amplifications of genes related with lung cancer by multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) technique.

Background: Lung cancer has the leading mortality rate among all cancers and it is the second most common cause of death following cardiovascular diseases.The aim of the study was determining deleted and/or amplified regions of 64 different loci previously associated with lung cancer, by using Multiplex Ligation-dependent Probe Amplification (MLPA).

Results: The most frequently seen deletions in lung cancerous tissues were in 2p, 3p, 13q, 17p, 16p and the most frequently seen amplifications were in 17q, 8p and 5q. We observed same deletions in the same regions in normal lung tissues as in cancerous tissues in lower frequencies. Deletions in 5q, 8p, 9q, 10p, 11p. 11q, 12p, 14q, 17q and 21q probe regions were seen especially in cancerous tissues.

Materials/methods: One hundred non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) tissue samples which had been previously examined histopathologically were included in this investigation. DNA extracts of normal lung tissues from the same patients were used as control group in the study.

Conclusions: As a conclusion, it was determined that MLPA is an alternative technique which can give cheap, fast and reliable results in the screening of lung cancers. The findings obtained in the study are compatible with the literature. MLPA is one of the most important molecular techniques which have been developed recently and it can be used in cancer screening easily and reliably.