BRCA1 Gene Mutations in Chinese Families with Breast Cancer

BRCA1 gene mutations in Chinese families with breast cancer

OBJECTIVE To investigate the frequency of BRCA1 gene mutations in breast cancer families in China.METHODS Genomic DNA was obtained by conventional techniques from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells collected from 94 persons derived from 45 breast cancer families. All participants gave written informed consent. The mutations in the BRCA1 gene were detected by the polymerase chain reaction and single stranded conformation polymorphism(PCR-SSCP). Then , the samples of interest were sent for direct DNA sequencing.RESULTS No mutation sites were found in exon 2 or 20 by DNA sequencing.Eight sites were found in exon 11 such as 2201C>T (Ser694Ser),3232A>G(Glu 1038Gly), 2201C >A/G (Ser694Arg), 2731C >T (Pro871Leu),2086A >T(Asn591lle) and three sites of 1584G>T (Glu424Stop). Three mutation sites were found in exon 16 which included 5106A >G (Met1663Val),5208delT(Stop 1639) and 4956A>G (Ser 1613Gly).CONCLUSION These mutation sites may be related to breast cancer, but more investigation is needed to determine whether the mutation sites are hot spots of mutations in Chinese familial breast cancer patients.