Characterization of cancer genes in normal tissues and a database development

• Grant number: 15/10529-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2015
• End date: December 31, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biochemistry - Molecular Biology
• Principal Investigator: Pedro Alexandre Favoretto Galante
• Grantee: Vanessa Candiotti Buzatto
• Host Institution: Hospital Sírio-Libanês. Sociedade Beneficente de Senhoras (SBSHSL). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Currently, due to the new DNA sequencing platforms and the analysis capability of tumor genomes, we know many of the genes related to the process of human tumors appearance and maintenance, such as TP53, ERBB2, KRAS, APC, RB e PTEN (in this study called as "cancer genes), and many others. These genes, when mutated can function as oncogenes or leave their ability of suppressing cell tumor characteristics. Although we already knew many of the somatic mutations and aberrant expressions affecting these genes, we still know little about their normal profiles. For example, we do not know in which tissues many of the cancer genes are expressed in a constitutive way, which are their post-transcriptional and polymorphic changes commonly found in the human population and we still do not have useful databases to display such information. This study aims to obtain, organize and make available various information of the cancer genes from normal conditions. We intend to develop a database with a WEB interface where the users could get cancer genes information from, at least, 16 normal tissues; their splicing isoforms; their polymorphisms and allele frequency in different populations, and other information. We believe that this tool, still unavailable, will be of great value to the scientific community working in that area of cancer.