A deadly inheritance

Article Abstract:

The protein encoded by the p53 gene is involved in the control of cell growth and has been shown to suppress the growth of cells. Thus the p53 gene is known as a tumor suppressor gene. Its inactivation leads to the development of tumors. The p53 gene can actually cause inhibition of cancerous cell growth, as occurs in cells that have been experimentally given oncogenes (genes that are known to be involved in cancer formation). Mutations (genetic changes) in the p53 gene occur in a large proportion, approximately 50 percent, of human cancers. A normal p53 gene can also cause inhibition of human cancers in cells that have a mutated p53 gene. The majority of individuals who have mutations in the p53 gene do not develop multiple tumors, as seen in diseases where other tumor suppressor genes are mutated (such as neurofibromatosis, adenomatous polyposis, and multiple endocrine neoplasia). Apparently, mutations in the p53 gene can occur late, 10 to 30 years after the initial development of cancer. A study was conducted with patients with Li-Fraumeni syndrome, an inherited disease which is characterized by the development of multiple cancers in various tissue types at various locations in the body. The p53 gene was found to be mutated at a particular site in the gene. The mutated p53 gene was found to be passed to future generations of the family. Thus, mutations in the p53 gene are a predisposing factor to the development of cancer. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Development and progression

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The p53 tumour suppressor gene

Article Abstract:

Cell growth and division is a complex process that is controlled by various factors. Both positive control (when factors turn a process on) and negative control (when factors turn a process off) exist. The protein p53 is a negative regulator, known as a tumor suppressor gene. The normal gene encoding the protein inhibits growth of cancer cells grown in tissue culture and inhibits growth of tumors in animals. The p53 protein and its effect can be altered or inactivated by genetic mutations (changes) or through interactions with DNA tumor viruses. This alteration or inactivation can lead to the development of cancer or uncontrolled cell growth. The p53 gene can also be altered in a way that it then can actually stimulate cell division. These types of genetic changes appear to occur very commonly in human cancer. An altered p53 gene has been found in cancers that are inherited, such as Li-Fraumeni syndrome, (a syndrome characterized by multiple cancers at different sites in the body), but also in cancers that are not inherited. A mutated p53 gene has been found in 75 to 80 percent of colon cancers that have been analyzed. Other types of cancer in which mutated p53 genes are found include lung cancer, brain and breast tumors, and chronic myelogenous leukemia. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Colorectal cancer, Cancer, Cancer genetics

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Germ-line transmission of a mutated p53 gene in a cancer-prone family with Li-Fraumeni syndrome

Article Abstract:

The protein encoded by the p53 gene is involved in the control of cell growth and has been shown to suppress the growth of cells. Therefore, this gene is known as a tumor suppressor gene, and if it is inactivated this leads to the development of tumors. Mutations, or genetic changes, in the p53 gene have been discovered in many human cancers. The p53 gene was analyzed in a family affected by Li-Fraumeni syndrome, in which cancers develop in various tissue types at multiple locations in the body. Eighteen members of the family from six generations who had cancer were studied. Mutations were found in the same location of the p53 gene in four members of the family in two different generations. The mutation of p53 in this particular site may, therefore, be a predisposing factor for the development of cancer. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

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