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. 2013 Jun 17;14(6):12650-60.
doi: 10.3390/ijms140612650.

Human chorionic gonadotropin beta subunit genes CGB1 and CGB2 are transcriptionally active in ovarian cancer

Marta Kubiczak  1 , Grzegorz P Walkowiak, Ewa Nowak-Markwitz, Anna Jankowska
Affiliations

Human chorionic gonadotropin beta subunit genes CGB1 and CGB2 are transcriptionally active in ovarian cancer

Marta Kubiczak et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Human chorionic gonadotropin beta subunit (CGB) is a marker of pregnancy as well as trophoblastic and nontrophoblastic tumors. CGB is encoded by a cluster of six genes, of which type II genes (CGB3/9, 5 and 8) have been shown to be upregulated in relation to type I genes (CGB6/7) in both placentas and tumors. Recent studies revealed that CGB1 and CGB2, originally considered as pseudogenes, might also be active, however, the protein products of these genes have not yet been identified. Our study demonstrates the presence of CGB1 and CGB2 transcripts in ovarian carcinomas. While CGB1 and CGB2 gene activation was not detected in normal ovaries lacking cancerous development, our study demonstrates the presence of CGB1 and CGB2 transcripts in 41% of analyzed ovarian cancer cases.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Relative expression of total CGB genes in normal ovarian tissues, ovarian carcinomas and term placentas. Results are presented as the logarithm to the base 10.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Relative expression of CGB3-9 genes in normal ovarian tissues, ovarian carcinomas and term placentas. Results are presented as the logarithm to the base 10.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Relative expression of CGB1-2 genes in ovarian carcinomas and term placentas. None of studied healthy ovaries exhibited expression of CGB1-2. Results are presented as the logarithm to the base 10.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Categorized histogram of CGB1-2 relative expression in tissues of normal ovaries, ovarian carcinomas and term placentas. Results are presented as the logarithm to the base 10. Data not normally distributed.
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