Colon Cancer Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Colon Cancer, including details on causes, treatment, symptoms.

Characterization of a novel oncogenic K-ras mutation in colon cancer.

Akagi K, Uchibori R, Yamaguchi K, Kurosawa K, Tanaka Y, Kozu T

Molecular Diagnosis and Cancer Prevention Division, Saitama Cancer Center, 818 Komuro Ina, Kitaadachigun, Saitama 362-0806, Japan. akagi@cancer-c.pref.saitama.jp

Activating mutations of RAS are frequently observed in subsets of human cancers, indicating that RAS activation is involved in tumorigenesis. Here, we identified and characterized a novel G to T transversion mutation of the K-ras gene at the third position of codon 19 (TTG) which substituted phenylalanine for leucine in 3 primary colon carcinomas. Biological and biochemical activity was examined using transformed NIH3T3 cells expressing mutant or wild-type K-ras. Transformants harboring the K-ras mutation at codon 19 showed proliferative capacity under serum-starved conditions, less contact inhibition, anchorage-independent growth, tumorigenicity in nude mice and elevation of active Ras-GTP levels. These results indicated that this novel mutation possesses high oncogenic activity.

Published 15 December 2006 in Biochem Biophys Res Commun, 352(3): 728-32.
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