Project Details
Description
DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Several etiologic factors have been
suggested for prostate cancer, including both genetic and environmental
factors. Established risk factors include age, race, and family history. It
is becoming more apparent that common polymorphisms that result in
quantitative or qualitative functional differences in protein products play an
important role in modifying disease risk. For prostate cancer, the most
compelling hypothesis for increased cancer risk supports a hormonal
involvement, which could include enzymes involved in the androgen metabolic
pathway and gonadotrophins. Additionally, there is evidence suggesting that
estrogen metabolites, as genotoxins, also increase risk for prostate cancer.
In this study, we propose to systematically test the hypothesis that common
genetic polymorphisms for enzymes that catalyze the synthesis and
bioactivation of androgens and estrogen (CYP11A1, CYP17, CYP 19, HSD3B2,
HSD17B1, HSD17B3, AKR1C3, SRD5A2), either individually or in combination, are
risk factors for prostate cancer. In addition, we hypothesize that common
genetic polymorphisms that catalyze the synthesis of catecholestrogens (CYP1A1
and CYP1B1), as well as enzymes that metabolically inactivate estrogens,
catecholestrogens, or genotoxins generated from catecholestrogens (COMT,
SULT1A1, the GSTs and NQO1), either individually or in combination, might also
represent predisposing genetic risk factors for prostate cancer. This
hypothesis will be tested in a case-control study that uses two sets of
previously identified cases - those with a strong family history of prostate
cancer (n=449 from 181 families) and those with a reported negative prostate
cancer family history (n=500) - and a population-based control group (n=510).
The controls have been extensively screened for prostate cancer by digital
rectal examination, serum PSA measurement, transrectal sonographic imaging and
when indicated, biopsy. At the conclusion of this project, we will have
provided important insight into the potential role of a group of genes
important in androgen and estrogen metabolism and generated hypotheses about
how these interact in the etiology of prostate cancer. Additionally, by
making pairwise comparisons among these three groups of subjects, we will be
able to discern whether these common polymorphisms are more strongly
associated with familial or sporadic prostate cancer, similarly associated
with both or with neither. The overarching goal of this project is to
identify genetic susceptibility factors of prostate cancer in order to improve
our understanding of the etiology of this disease and potentially identify men
at increased risk of developing the disease in whom prevention strategies
might be targeted.
Status | Finished |
---|---|
Effective start/end date | 8/31/01 → 8/31/13 |
Funding
- National Cancer Institute
ASJC
- Medicine(all)
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