Recently, the concept that epigenetic, as well as genetic, events might be central to the
evolution of human cancer is re-emerging. Cancers often exhibit an aberrant methylation of …

The methylation of DNA is an epigenetic modification that can play an important role in the
control of gene expression in mammalian cells. The enzyme involved in this process is DNA …

Background The DNA-repair enzyme O 6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT)
inhibits the killing of tumor cells by alkylating agents. MGMT activity is controlled by a …

Background: Inherited mutations in the BRCA1 gene may be responsible for almost half of
inherited breast carcinomas. However, somatic (acquired) mutations in BRCA1 have not …

Cytosine-5 DNA methylation occurs in the context of CpG dinucleotides in vertebrates.
Aberrant methylation of CpG islands in human tumors has been shown to cause …

Normal human cells exhibit a limited replicative life span in culture, eventually arresting
growth by a process termed senescence. Progressive telomere shortening appears to …

Despite the promise of using DNA markers for the early detection of cancer, none has
proven universally applicable to the most common and lethal forms of human malignancy …

Caspase 8 is a cysteine protease regulated in both a death-receptor-dependent and-
independent manner during apoptosis. Here, we report that the gene for caspase 8 is …

Expression of the p53 gene protects cells against malignant transformation,. Whereas
control of p53 degradation has been a subject of intense scrutiny, little is known about the …

Promoter hypermethylation is an important pathway for repression of gene transcription in
cancer cells. We analyzed aberrant DNA methylation at four genes in primary tumors from …