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Byline: Keivan. Moradi, Esmaeil. Babaei, Mohammad. Hosseinpour Feizi, Reza. Safaralizadeh, Nayebali. Rezvani Background: In recent years, the study of potential epigenetic biomarkers in feces has been an attractive research approach [...]

Byline: Keivan. Moradi, Esmaeil. Babaei, Nayebali. Rezvani, Reza. Safaralizadeh, Homayoun. Bashiri, Mohammad. Feizi Background: Despite the advances in screening during the past decades, colorectal cancer (CRC) still is a leading [...]

Background: In recent years, the study of potential epigenetic biomarkers in feces has been an attractive research approach for the noninvasive diagnosis of colorectal cancer (CRC). The aim of this study was to evaluate the stool-based DNA methylation potential of SRY-Box 21 (SOX21) gene promoter as an appropriate candidate biomarker for differentiating CRC patients and healthy individuals for the first time.Methods: The MethyLight method was performed to analyze the methylation status of SOX21 gene promoter in fecal samples from 40 patients with CRC and 40 healthy controls. In addition, the diagnostic efficiency of measuring the hypermethylated SOX21 gene in the feces to the fecal occult blood test (FOBT) was compared.Results: The percentage of methylated reference (PMR) values in the stool of CRC patients (median 1.44) was higher than those of healthy individuals (median 0.00) (P < 0.001). A sensitivity of 72.5% and specificity of 100% were obtained for SOX21 gene promoter methylation status and 29 of the patients were considered as positive in methylation status. There was no significant association between PMR values and demographic/clinicopathological features (P > 0.05).Conclusion: The results of the present study demonstrated that the stool-based assay of SOX21 gene promoter methylation has a relatively high sensitivity and specificity and it may serve as a noninvasive biomarker for early detection of CRC. However, more studies with a wide range of samples are required to further confirm the role of hypermethylation of SOX21 in the early CRC diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Despite the advances in screening during the past decades, colorectal cancer (CRC) still is a leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide. Therefore, the development of new diagnostic methods is necessary.Aim: The aim of this study was to compare methylation changes of SRY-Box 21 (SOX21) gene promoter in tumor tissues and their normal adjacent mucosa in patients with CRC and to examine the relationship between the methylation levels and demographic/clinicopathological factors.Materials and Methods: A total of 41 CRC patients participated in the present study. After the extraction of DNA and bisulfite treatment of the samples, the methylation levels were determined by using the MethyLight method.Statistical Analysis: Two-sided Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the median level of methylation in tumor tissues and their adjacent normal mucosa.Results: The methylation rates in tumor tissue samples were significantly higher compared to their adjacent normal mucosa (P < 0.0001). No association between demographic/clinicopathological factors and methylation status observed in tumor tissues. A receiver operating characteristics curve was constructed and tissue samples exhibited a sensitivity of 80.5% and specificity of 97.6% for SOX21 promoter methylation.Conclusion: The results of this study indicated the high potential of SOX21 gene promoter methylation as a candidate noninvasive diagnostic biomarker in stool and plasma of colorectal cancer patients. However, further studies with larger sample sizes are required to evaluate the specific role of SOX21 methylation as a biomarker for early detection of CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]