FLI1 is a member of ETS family of transcription factors that regulate a variety of normal biologic activities including cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. The expression of FLI1 and its correlation with well-known breast cancer prognostic markers (ER, PR and HER2) was determined in primary breast tumors as well as four breast cancer lines including: MCF-7, T47D, MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-468 using RT-qPCR with either 18S rRNA or ACTB (β-actin) for normalization of data. FLI1 mRNA level was decreased in the breast cancer cell lines under study compared to the normal breast tissue; however, Jurkat cells, which were used as a positive control, showed overexpression compared to the normal breast. Regarding primary breast carcinomas, FLI1 is significantly under expressed in all of the stages of breast cancer upon using 18S as an internal control. This FLI1 expression was correlated with ER, PR and HER2 status. In conclusion FLI1 can be exploited as a preliminary marker that can predict the status of ER, PR and HER2 in primary breast tumors.
University of Baghdad
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