Molecular biology of prostate cancer

Carcinoma of the prostate (CaP) is a very prevalent tumor among men. However thus far, relatively little information is known about the molecular mechanisms involved in the development, progression and metastasis of this disease. This article reviews the current state of knowledge of five selected molecular aspects of human CaP: tumor suppressor genes, metastasis suppressor genes and related biological events (allelic loss and DNA methylation), oncogenes (including growth factors and their receptors), the anti-apoptosis gene BCL2, and the human androgen receptor gene (hAR). Alterations of these genes in structure and expression as well as the frequencies of these molecular events are discussed to synthesize an understanding of documented genetic alterations that occur in CaP and their possible relation to the biology of the disease.