[Studies on deletion of 1p36 in oral squamous cell carcinoma]

The deletion of region 36 in the short arm of chromosome 1 (1p36) was investigated in 18 patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma by means of the double-target fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) method. 1p36 has been suggested to harbor a putative tumor suppressor gene, and thought to carry several genes such as p58, FRAP and TNF-R II. The deletion of 1p36 may play a part in cell regulation, apotosis, promotion and progression of carcinoma cells. The double-target FISH was completed by the use of a biotin-labeled chromosome 1 centromeric repetitive probe and a digoxigenin-labeled 1p36 probe in biopsied specimens obtained from these patients before the treatment. The ploidy pattern of the nuclear DNA of these specimens was also examined by flow cytometry. The deletion of 1p36 was observed in 3 patients with poor prognosis showing aneuploidy in their nuclear DNA. These results may indicate that the deletion of 1p36 can be a reliable factor in the poor prognosis of patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma.