Increased Expression of the Genes for Mitotic Spindle Assembly and Chromosome Segregation in Both Lung and Pancreatic...

Genes whose expression was modulated in two different tumor types, lung or pancreatic carcinoma, were identified by DNA microarray and subsequent expression correlation analyses. For more accurate comparison of the gene expression between tumor and normal cells, tumor cells and normal epithelium cells were isolated by laser-captured microdissection. Genes whose expression was significantly altered in lung carcinomas or pancreatic carcinomas as compared to their normal counterparts were ranked by the T-values calculated from the Fisher's ratios and their corresponding background Fisher's ratios, followed by statistical confirmation using the Welch's t-test. Among the genes that were ranked in the top 150, either in lung carcinomas or pancreatic carcinomas, expressions of MAD2, BUB1, BUB1B, HEC, CENPE, ZWINT, KNSL1, SMC4, CCNB, TK and PMS2L6 were found to be significantly up-regulated in both tumor types. Interestingly, 8 of the above 11 genes code for the proteins involved in the mitotic spindle assembly and chromosome segregation. Furthermore, the search for genes whose expression correlated with one of the above 5 genes yielded additional genes that are also considered to be involved in mitotic spindle assembly and chromosome segregation. Thus, increased expression of the genes for mitotic spindle assembly and chromosome segregation are a common feature of at least lung carcinomas and pancreatic carcinomas and, therefore, such genes may be potential targets for widely effective anticancer agents.