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Updated: Sep 30, 2026
miRNA Expression Analyses in Prostate Cancer Clinical Tissues
Published on: September 8, 2015
Microsatellite instability and prostate cancer: clinical and pathological implications
1Urologic Oncology Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 77030, USA. leachf@mail.nih.gov
Purpose Of Review:
The purpose of this review is to discuss early and recent reports investigating microsatellite instability and mismatch repair expression in prostate cancer.
Recent Findings:
Human mismatch repair genes encode highly conserved interacting proteins that suppress genetic instability by correcting misincorporated nucleotides and insertion/deletion mispairs formed during DNA replication. Mismatch repair deficiency causes genetic instability at microsatellite sequences because of the cell's inability to correct errors caused by DNA polymerase slippage at repetitive sequences. Microsatellite instability is characteristic of mismatch repair deficiency, and has been used as a surrogate marker for the inactivation of mismatch repair genes. Inherited mismatch repair gene mutations predispose to gastrointestinal and genitourinary malignancies in a cancer predisposition syndrome known as hereditary non-polyposis colorectal carcinoma. Although strong evidence for an inherited predisposition to prostate cancer does not exist in hereditary non-polyposis colorectal carcinoma, mismatch repair deficiency and mismatch repair gene mutations have been described in sporadic prostate cancer and prostate cancer cell lines. Early reports detected microsatellite instability in prostate cancer, and correlated this genetic alteration to clinical and pathological findings in men diagnosed with this malignancy. Recent reports have identified mismatch repair gene mutations, mismatch repair deficiency and differential mismatch repair gene expression in prostate cancer. In addition, a prognostic role for mismatch repair gene expression in prostate cancer has been suggested.
Summary:
The early identification of microsatellite instability in prostate cancer led to more specific investigation of mismatch repair gene expression. Although additional research is required, mismatch repair gene expression may have important biological and clinical significance in prostate cancer.
Insights
Microsatellite instability and mismatch repair gene expression are increasingly recognized in prostate cancer. Research suggests these markers may hold significant biological and clinical importance for the malignancy.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Mismatch repair (MMR) genes correct DNA replication errors, preventing genetic instability.
- MMR deficiency leads to microsatellite instability (MSI), a marker for MMR gene inactivation.
- While not strongly linked to hereditary non-polyposis colorectal carcinoma, MMR deficiency occurs in sporadic prostate cancer.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review early and recent findings on microsatellite instability (MSI) in prostate cancer.
- To discuss the role of mismatch repair (MMR) gene expression in prostate cancer.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of early and recent reports on MSI and MMR in prostate cancer.
- Analysis of studies investigating MMR gene mutations, deficiency, and expression patterns.
Main Results:
- Early studies detected MSI in prostate cancer, correlating it with clinical findings.
- Recent research identified MMR gene mutations, deficiency, and differential expression in prostate cancer.
- MMR gene expression is emerging as a potential prognostic marker.
Conclusions:
- Early MSI detection spurred further investigation into MMR gene expression in prostate cancer.
- MMR gene expression may possess significant biological and clinical relevance for prostate cancer management.
- Additional research is needed to fully elucidate the role of MMR in prostate cancer.
