美科学家发现三个新的肺癌致病基因

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来自美国冷泉港实验室（Cold Spring Harbor Lab CSHL）的科学家最近发现了3个新的肺癌致癌基因，它们和20%的肺癌有关。这些基因位于人类14号染色体上，它们彼此相邻，科学家已知其中两个与胎儿期间肺部发育相关。

CSHL的首席科学家David Mu表示：“成人体内的肺癌细胞能使通常只在早期肺部发育过程中活跃的基因恢复活性。我们找到了触发这种异常的发育基因再活跃的变异，并发现如果关闭这些基因就能阻止癌症发展。”

CSHL的科学家发现这3个被称为TTF1、NKX2-8和PAX9的基因能再激发一种早期的胎儿基因表达模式，这会导致肿瘤生长。CSHL科学家，文章合作者Scott Powers说：“3个基因的共同作用以及它们在染色体上如此接近的事实或许能解释该变异为何在肺癌中如此普遍。”通过和Memorial Sloan Kettering肿瘤中心的William Gerald博士合作，研究小组发现这一变异在晚期肺癌中更常见，并有可能是癌症复发的危险因子。

CSHL领导进行的研究证明，该变异导致的癌症是可以逆转的。未来这可能带来新的治疗手段。目前癌症研究只针对单个基因，而事实上癌症通常是由多个肿瘤基因联合造成的。这些基因的变异决定了癌细胞的生长以及癌症治疗的效果

CSHL researchers discover three new genes that cause lung cancer
Researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) have discovered three genes that interact with cancerous results in 20% of lung cancers. The three genes are located next to each other on human chromosome 14 and two are known to play key roles in fetal lung development.

According to CSHL lead investigator David Mu, “lung cancer cells in adults can reactivate genes that are normally active in the earliest stages of lung development. We identified the mutation that triggers this abnormal re-activation of developmental genes and showed that if you turn off these genes, you stop the cancer.”

The CSHL research found that the three genes termed TTF1, NKX2-8, and PAX9 interact to reactivate what appears to be an early fetal gene expression pattern that results in cancer tumor growth. “The collaboration of these genes and the fact that they are so close together on the chromosome may explain why this mutation is so common in lung cancer,” said CSHL investigator and co-author Scott Powers. In collaboration with Dr. William Gerald at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the study finds that the mutation is more prevalent in late stage lung cancer and is possibly a risk factor for recurrence

The CSHL-led research demonstrates that the cancerous results of the mutation can be reversed. In the future, this may lead to new treatment options for patients. Cancer research that looks at one gene at a time ignores the fact that cancers are usually caused by multiple collaborating cancer genes. Mutations in these genes determine the clinical outcome of the cancerous growth and how the cancer responds to treatment.

“At CSHL we are excited about the ability to apply direct genomic analysis to human cancers and discover more about how cancer genes interact,” said Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and CSHL Cancer Center Deputy Director Scott Lowe.