D-loop Region Of Mitochondrial Dna Mutations In The Tumor Tissue

Mutations of mitochondrial DNA D-Loop in human tumors Objective : To investigate mutations in the D-Loop of mitochondrial DNA in human cancers and discuss the relationship between the mitochondrial DNA mutations and the carcinogenesis. Subjects and Methods: We randomly selected 20 cases colorectal cancers and 10 cases breast cancers together with the adjacent normal tissues. The variances of D-loop region were blindly screened by denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography and confirmed by DNA sequencing. Result: Mutation was found in 3 of 20 (15%) cases of colorectal cancers. Mutation was found in 1 of 10 (10%) cases of breast cancer. Eight mutations were detected in four cases and 1 mutation which was not reported previously in the mtDNA Database . Conclusion:The D-loop region of mitochondrial DNA is a highly polymorphoric and mutable region and mtDNA mutation may play a role in the development of colorectal cancers and breast cancers.