Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, 6120 Executive Boulevard, EPS 8110, MSC 7240, Bethesda, MD 20892-7240, USA.
Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2010 Apr;19(4):973-7. doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-10-0091. Epub 2010 Mar 23.
Analysis of DNA, RNA, and protein extracted from tissue specimens in epidemiologic studies is useful for assessing etiologic heterogeneity, mechanisms of carcinogenesis, and biomarkers for prognosis and prediction of treatment responses. Fresh-frozen tissue samples may provide optimal quality nucleic acids, but pose multiple logistical considerations, including rapid access to tissues before histopathologic examination and specialized equipment for freezing, transport, and storage; in addition, morphology is often compromised. In contrast, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue samples, including enormous archives of existing specimens, represent a valuable source of retrospective biological material for epidemiologic research, although presenting different limitations compared with frozen samples. Recent efforts have made progress toward enhancing the utility of FFPE specimens for molecular analyses, including DNA studies, and increasingly for RNA and other macromolecules. Here, we report the method that we used to simultaneously recover DNA and RNA from FFPE tissue specimens with appreciable quantity and quality and discuss briefly the application of tumor markers in epidemiologic studies.
在流行病学研究中，从组织标本中提取的 DNA、RNA 和蛋白质的分析可用于评估病因异质性、致癌机制以及预后和预测治疗反应的生物标志物。新鲜冷冻组织样本可能提供最佳质量的核酸，但存在多种后勤方面的考虑因素，包括在组织病理学检查前快速获得组织，以及用于冷冻、运输和储存的专用设备；此外，形态通常会受到影响。相比之下，福尔马林固定石蜡包埋（FFPE）组织样本，包括大量现有的标本存档，代表了用于流行病学研究的有价值的回溯性生物材料来源，尽管与冷冻样本相比存在不同的局限性。最近的努力在提高 FFPE 标本在分子分析中的应用方面取得了进展，包括 DNA 研究，并且越来越多地用于 RNA 和其他大分子。在这里，我们报告了一种从具有相当数量和质量的 FFPE 组织标本中同时回收 DNA 和 RNA 的方法，并简要讨论了肿瘤标志物在流行病学研究中的应用。
