Researchers at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital (SNUBH) have found the mutation in a specific gene in the gastric mucosa that causes gastric cancer patients among family members.

If medical professionals can detect such genetic mutations at an early phase, I will help prevent and inhibit gastric cancer, the hospital said.

A research team found that mutation in Mucin 4 gene could increase the risk of gastric cancer among people who have two or more immediate family members with gastric cancer. From left, Professors Kim Na-young of Seoul Nation University Bundang Hospital (SNUBH), Choi Yoon-jin of Yonsei University College of Medicine, and Ohn Jung-hun of SNUBH.

The research team, led by Professor Kim Na-young of the Department of Gastroenterology, studied immediate members of families that have two or more gastric cancer patients. The researchers reported that mutations in the Mucin 4 (MUC4) gene, which produces the mucus in the gastric mucosa, may affect gastric cancer development.

Gastric cancer is caused by a combination of environmental and genetic factors. Spicy, salty, and burnt foods, smoking, and Helicobacter bacteria are mentioned as the causes of gastric cancer, but the genetic factor is also considered a major cause.

The research team studied 112 people in 14 families with two or more members with gastric cancer and analyzed the genetic mutations related to gastric cancer. The team separated deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) from the blood of 19 patients with gastric cancer and the control group of 36 people without cancer and performed whole-exome sequencing.

The result showed that mutation occurred in the MUC4 gene located at the gastric mucosa in people with cancer. The MUC4 is a protein that makes up the sticky mucus in the gastric mucosa. The mucus not only protects the mucosa and aids digestion, but it also defends against cancer.

“We have found for the first time that the MUC4 gene could work positively to protect the stomach and prevent cancer when it expresses normally, but it could increase gastric cancer risk if a mutation occurs,” Professor Kim Na-young said.

The study was published on the July issue of the journal, PLOS ONE.

shim531@docdocdoc.co.kr

<© Korea Biomedical Review, All rights reserved.>