Detection of human mammaglobin mRNA in breast cancer cells among Vietnamese women

Hien Minh Nguyen,1 Minh Quang Dao2 1Department of Biochemistry, Thanh Nhan Hospital, Hanoi, Vietnam; 2Department of Oncology, Thanh Nhan Hospital, Hanoi, Vietnam Background: Detecting circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is a promising approach for evaluating the progression of occult metastases as well as the efficacy of treatment therapies among patients with breast cancer. A real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique has been proposed for detecting CTCs due to its high sensitivity. In this study, we aimed to validate the RT-PCR technique for human mammaglobin (hMAM) mRNA detection among Vietnamese women with breast cancer. Patients and methods: Peripheral blood samples and breast cancer tissues from 43 patients suffering from breast cancer and 21 patients with fibroids were obtained. Real-time RT-PCR and gene sequencing techniques were employed to detect hMAM gene in CTCs of breast cancer cell lines and cancer tissues. Results: hMAM mRNA transcription was detected in 36 out of 43 (83.7%) breast cancer tissues and in blood of 23 out of 43 (53.5%) breast cancer patients, while it was detected in only 9.5% out of tissues and 0% of the blood of fibrosis patients. hMAM mRNA in the peripheral blood of breast cancer patients increased with tumor size, stage of cancer and distant metastasis (P<0.05). No difference in the expression of hMAM mRNA was found in breast cancer tissue regarding age, distant metastasis, lymph node, stages of cancer and histopathology (P>0.05). Conclusion: The study highlighted the expression of hMAM mRNA in breast cancer cells and tissues. This reveals the overall picture of the replication of hMAM mRNA in breast cancer, suggesting the role of hMAM mRNA in breast cancer molecular pathology. Keywords: human mammaglobin mRNA, hMAM mRNA, breast cancer, circulating tumor cell, CTC, women, Vietna