Five new genetic variations linked to prostate cancer uncovered in study on Japanese
Reported in Nature Genetics, the findings offer a first-ever glimpse of the genetic basis for prostate cancer susceptibility in a non-European population.
Despite having the lowest rates of prostate cancer in the world, Asian countries have experienced a rapid rise in incidence of the disease, which ranks as one of the world’s most prevalent forms of cancer. In Japan, Western lifestyles and an aging society have led to surging prostate cancer rates, contributing to growing public interest in understanding associated genetic factors. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS), which involve scanning complete genomes for variations linked to a particular disease, have drawn attention as a powerful means to do this.
In their study, researchers at the RIKEN Center for Genomic Medicine (CGM) and the University of Tokyo compared such variations, known as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), in a population made up of 4,584 Japanese men with prostate cancer and 8,801 control subjects. Out of 31 SNPs linked to prostate cancer susceptibility in previous studies on European subjects, they found that 19 were also associated with susceptibility in the Japanese population. The remaining 12 SNPs showed no association, while five new genomic regions were identified as associated with prostate cancer which had not been reported in early studies on European populations.
While deepening our understanding of the genetic basis of prostate carcinogenesis, these findings, the first ever genome-wide data on prostate cancer in a non-European population, highlight variation in susceptibility among ethnic populations. A better understanding of such variation promises more accurate risk assessment, improvements in screening protocols and more effective clinical treatment.
For more information, please contact:
Dr. Hidewaki Nakagawa
Laboratory for Biomarker Development
RIKEN Center for Genomic Medicine
Tel: +81-(0)3-5449-5785 / Fax: +81-(0)3-5449-5785
Ms. Tomoko Ikawa (PI officer)
Global Relations Office
RIKEN
Tel: +81-(0)48-462-1225 / Fax: +81-(0)48-463-3687
Email: koho@riken.jp
Media Contact
All latest news from the category: Life Sciences and Chemistry
Articles and reports from the Life Sciences and chemistry area deal with applied and basic research into modern biology, chemistry and human medicine.
Valuable information can be found on a range of life sciences fields including bacteriology, biochemistry, bionics, bioinformatics, biophysics, biotechnology, genetics, geobotany, human biology, marine biology, microbiology, molecular biology, cellular biology, zoology, bioinorganic chemistry, microchemistry and environmental chemistry.
Newest articles
Superradiant atoms could push the boundaries of how precisely time can be measured
Superradiant atoms can help us measure time more precisely than ever. In a new study, researchers from the University of Copenhagen present a new method for measuring the time interval,…
Ion thermoelectric conversion devices for near room temperature
The electrode sheet of the thermoelectric device consists of ionic hydrogel, which is sandwiched between the electrodes to form, and the Prussian blue on the electrode undergoes a redox reaction…
Zap Energy achieves 37-million-degree temperatures in a compact device
New publication reports record electron temperatures for a small-scale, sheared-flow-stabilized Z-pinch fusion device. In the nine decades since humans first produced fusion reactions, only a few fusion technologies have demonstrated…
