Cytogenetic analysis of primary breast tumors and MCF10A cells to determine early steps of breast carcinoma

Breast cancers are characterized by genomic instability, abnormal chromosomal counts and multiple translocations. There is a heavy burden on tumor cells to acquire as many mutations as possible in a short time. Tumors seem to achieve that through genomic instability. The role of homologous recombinational repair loss has been well established as a mechanism of chromosomal instability. A researcher at the University of Pittsburgh, Dr. Jean Latimer, was able to demonstrate the loss of nucleotide excision repair (NER), in adjacent non tumor tissue. NER functions in bulky adducts repair, following UV radiation. These lesions introduce a bend in the DNA molecule blocking replication and transcription; therefore causing genomic instability. Some of the 30 polypeptides of NER were shown to be lost during different stages of breast cancer development. The aim of the study was to cytogenetically analyze primary breast tumors and MCF10A cells and to check for chromosomal abnormalities in these cultures with a special focus on early events