Identification of differentially expressed prostate genes: Increased expression of transcription factor ETS-2 in prostate cancer

BACKGROUND Little is known about the genetic events in the malignant transformation of prostatic cells. This is due in large measure to the cellular heterogeneity of the prostate. METHODS An amplification method was devised to synthesize cDNA from small samples of cancer and benign tissues of the same resected glands. Differential gene expression of candidate informative markers between cancer and benign was screened by the polymerase chain reaction with gene-specific oligonucleotide primers. RESULTS The expression of a transcription factor, ETS-2, was shown to be elevated in some cancer specimens. Elevated expression was also noted for neuron-specific enolase (NSE) and another transcription factor, SEF2. CONCLUSIONS Our method can be used to identify quickly genes that are differentially expressed between benign and cancerous prostate cells. Transcription factors, such as ETS-2, may play a significant role in cancer progression. Prostate 30:145–153, 1997. © 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.