DNA Hypermethylation Signatures for Detection of Breast Cancer in Vietnamese Population

Abstract

Breast cancer is the common cause of death among women in most countries worldwide, with rapidly increases in the developing countries, including Vietnam. To establish the potential biomarker is an attempt of researchers in the world, one of the biomarkers is the disruptions of the genetic material such as the epigenetics including DNA methylation. In present study, with the aim towards using the hypermethylation at CpG islands of promoter of candidate genes as the biomarker for breast cancer in Vietnamese population, sensitive methyl specific PCR (MSP) was carried out to analyze the hypermethylation status of the panel of candidate genes including BRCA1, p16^INK4α, GSTP1, RASSF1A and Cyclin D2 gene in 115 samples including 95 breast cancer specimens and 20 normal breast tissues from another disease (not breast cancer) which were obtained from Ho Chi Minh City Medical Hospital, Vietnam. The results indicated that the hypermethylation of one or more genes occurred in all total of 95 tumor specimens (100% diagnostic coverage) with the frequencies for methylation of each genes reach to 82.1% (p<0.001), 62.1% (p<0.01), 49.5% (p<0.05), 43.2% (p<0.01) and 42.1% (p<0.05) for BRCA1, Cyclin D2, p16^INK4α, GSTP1, and RASSF1A gene, respectively. In addition, the DNA hypermethylation of the panel of candidate genes increase the possibility to be breast cancer with high incidence via calculated of odd ratio (p<0.05). In conclusion, the hypermethylation of candidate genes could be used as the promising biomarkers applying in Vietnamese breast cancer patients.