Genetic variations make individuals unique, and that uniqueness also extends to cancer. A new study by the George Washington University Cancer Center has identified that African American men tend to have a genetic variation which makes their prostate cancer difficult to treat.
The particular genetic variation occurs at the level of mRNAMessenger RNA, an RNA molecule is a copy of a particular gene that is used in the production of a protein. Messenger RNA is produced in the nucleus via the process of transcription and is exported through holes or pores in the nuclear envelope into the cytoplasm. mRNA then attaches to a ribosome where the encoded message is read to produce a protein in the process termed translation., an information shuttle in cells. mRNA is made of smaller building blocks that are pasted together, forming instructions to build proteins. The study found that for a particular proteinOne of the four basic types of biomolecule. Proteins are polymers made up of strings of amino acids. Proteins serve many functions in organisms including transport of molecules, structure, cell adhesion and as signaling molecules such as hormones. Many transcription factors, including p53 and Rb are proteins. involved in prostate cancer, African American men were more likely to have a slightly altered mRNA. This led to the creation of a new form of the protein compared to that found in American men of European descent. This slight difference made their cancer more aggressive and difficult to treat.
Top