[Detection of Y chromosome loss by fluorescence in situ hybridization in pancreatic cancer].

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the correlation between loss of Y chromosome and development of pancreatic cancer.

METHOD: The status of Y chromosome was analyzed by two color interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization. performed on paraffin sections of pancreatic cancer tissues from 15 Chinese males. The probes located on the heterochromatin region of chromosome Y (maps to Yq12) and on the alpha satellite of X chromosome (maps to centromeric region) were selected for testing and as control respectively.

RESULTS

The cancer cells from 10 out of the 15 pancreatic cancer patients studied showed loss of chromosome Y. The Y chromosome in the cells of surrounding non-neoplastic pancreatic tissues was intact.

CONCLUSIONS

Loss of chromosome Y occurs non-randomly in tumor cells of Chinese male patients with pancreatic cancer. This cytogenetic aberration, which happens in high frequency, may serve as one of the markers for pancreatic malignancy.