Methylation Status of RASSF1A Gene Promoter in Cervical Carcinoma and Its Clinical Significance

Objective To study the methylation status of RASSF1A gene promoter in cervical carcinoma and explore its clinical significance.Methods Microspectrophotometry(MSP) and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR) were performed to detect the methylation status of RASSF1A gene promoter and its mRNA expressions in cervical carcinoma and paracancerous tissues in 65 patients with cervical carcinoma,which was confirmed in our hospital from Jan 2008 to Jan 2009.Results Of these 65 cervical carcinoma tissues,methylated strap(methylation rate:73.8%) with inhibited mRNA expression were observed in 48 patients.Four patients had methylated promoters in paracancerous tissues with normal mRNA expression.The methylation of RASSF1A gene promoter in cervical carcinoma was not correlated with age(P0.05),but was positively correlated with tumor diameter(P0.05).The methylation rate of RASSF1A gene promoter in cervical squamous cell carcinoma,adenocarcinoma,and adenosquamous carcinoma were 82.0%,40.0%,and 60.0%,respectively(P0.05).The methylation of RASSF1A gene promoter in cervical carcinoma was positively correlated with FIGO staging and lymph node metastasis(P0.05).Conclusion RASSF1A gene promoter hypermethylation may play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of cervical carcinoma.It is positively correlated with clinical staging and pathologic types.It can be served as a tumor biomarker in the molecular diagnosis and prognosis evaluation of cervical carcinoma.