Ribozyme Targeting the Novel Fusion Junction of EGFRvIII in Breast Cancer

摘要

EGFRvIII is a tumor specific, ligand-independent, constitutively activated variant of the epidermal growth factor receptor. We have detected high frequency of EGFRvIII expression in breast cancer. We also detected high frequency of co-expression of wt-EGFR with EGFRvIII mRNA in the same invasive breast carcinoma. Expression of EGFRvIII by ribozyme revealed down-regulation of EGFRvIII expression and reduced the tumorigenicity in athymic nude mice. These results suggest that EGFRvIII plays a significant role in breast cancer cell proliferation.