Hypermethylation of CpG island is a common mechanism for the inactivation of tumor-related genes. In the present study, we analyzed 13 genitourinary cancer cell lines for aberrant DNA methylation of 5 tumor-related genes using methylation- specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP). GSTP1 was methylated in 5 (38.5%), E-cadherin in 1 (8%), VHL in 1 (8%), and MGMT and hMLH1 in none (0%). Six out of thirteen genitourinary cancer cell lines had methylation of at least one of five genes; 5 had one gene methylated, and, 1 had two genes methylated. Methylation of these 5 genes was not detected in any of the bladder cancer cell lines. GSTP1 was methylated in all of the 3 prostate cancer cell lines. We conclude that aberrant hypermethylation may be an important mechanism for the inactivation of cancer-related genes in kidney and prostate cancer cell lines.
Bladder Neoplasms/genetics ; Cadherins/genetics ; *DNA Methylation ; DNA Primers ; Genetic Screening/methods ; Glutathione Transferase/genetics ; Human ; Isoenzymes/genetics ; Kidney Neoplasms/genetics ; Ligases/genetics ; Male ; Neoplasm Proteins/genetics ; O(6)-Methylguanine-DNA Methyltransferase/genetics ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Prostatic Neoplasms/genetics ; Tumor Cells, Cultured ; Urogenital Neoplasms/*genetics

Biomarkers, Tumor ; metabolism ; Breast Neoplasms ; metabolism ; DNA-Binding Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Digestive System Neoplasms ; metabolism ; Enhancer of Zeste Homolog 2 Protein ; Female ; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic ; Humans ; Lymphoma ; metabolism ; Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 ; Prognosis ; RNA, Messenger ; metabolism ; Transcription Factors ; genetics ; metabolism ; Urogenital Neoplasms ; metabolism