The role of differentially methylated genes in the initiation and progression of colorectal cancers

大多数结直肠癌是由肠内壁的息肉发展而来的。大部分癌症是由腺瘤性息肉发展而来的，但我们发现第二种叫做增生性息肉的息肉也可能与癌症的发展有关。在我们对这些息肉的研究中，我们发现所有这些息肉中都有一个特定的基因失活了。我们称这个基因为HPP1。HPP1在腺瘤性息肉和大约50%的结直肠癌中也被发现失活，这表明它可能在结直肠癌的早期阶段发挥重要作用，因此可能为预防性干预提供机会。这项拨款提案将研究HPP1在结直肠息肉和癌症发生中的功能。

Most colorectal cancers develop from polyps in the lining of the bowel. The bulk of cancers develop from adenomatous polyps, but we have found that a second type of polyp called a hyperplatic polyp can also be associated with the development of cancer. During our studies of these polyps we found that a particular gene was inactivated in all of these polyps. We have called this gene HPP1. HPP1 was also found to be inactivated in adenomatous polyps and about 50% of colorectal cancers, indicating that it may be an important player in the early stages of colorectal cancer and hence may allow opportunity for prevetive intervention. This grant proposal will investigate the function of HPP1 in the genesis of colorectal polyps and cancers.