Role of c-myb in Breast Development and Cancer
Abstract
In normal breast development, oncogenes and growth suppressor genes affect the cellular differentiation and growth rate and in tumorigenic state, they dictate metastatic pattern and response to treatment. Therefore, it is necessary to examine the role these genes play in normal and tumor cell growth and differentiation. c-myb belongs to the myb gene family which code for nuclear proteins that bind DNA in a sequence-specific manner and function as regulators of transcription (1). Recent evidence suggests a role for c-myb in breast development and breast cancer. c-myb is highly expressed in all estrogen receptor positive (ER+) breast tumors (2); and our in situ hybridization studies show that c-myb is expressed at high levels in ductal cells of virgin and pregnant breast tissue but is down-regulated in lactating breast tissue. These observations suggest that c-Myb might play a critical role in estrogen-mediated ductal cell proliferation. To address the role of c-myb in mammary development we propose to develop c-myb mutant mice where the expression of this gene is interrupted specifically in the mammary gland using the Cre-lox system. In addition, we propose to examine whether deregulated expression or structural alterations in c-myb gene leads to the genesis of breast tumors.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 2001
- Accession Number
- ADA394665
Entities
People
- E. P. Raddy
- Yen Lieu
Organizations
- Temple University