Multiplex pyrosequencing of two polymorphisms in DNA repair gene XRCC1

DNA repair enzymes play a pivotal role in platinum-based chemotherapy. Within the gene encoding for the base excision repair enzyme XRCC1, several nonsynonymous polymorphisms have been identified. It has been shown that the Arg399Gln single-nucleotide polymorphism results in a polymorphic enzyme that is less capable of initiating DNA repair. We developed a multiplex pyrosequence assay to simultaneously detect two nonsynonymous polymorphisms within the XRCC1 gene. Both of these polymorphisms resulted in amino acid changes: G/A in codon 399 changes Arg into Gln, and deletion of A in the second position of codon 576 results in a stopcodon. We established the frequency of these mutations in 270 patients suffering from colorectal cancer. Allele frequencies of G in second position of codon 399 and A in the second position codon 576 are 61.1 and 99.6%, respectively, in these patients. This fast and reliable method allows for simultaneous detection of the infrequent mutant C or CT alleles instead of the A deletion at codon 576. The method may be used in pharmacogenetic studies of platinum-based chemotherapy.