[Relation of c-Ha-ras point mutation to the prognosis and metastasis of gastric carcinoma].

Mouse fibroblast cell line NIH 3T3 was transfected with oncogene c-Ha-ras containing mutation at the 12th codon, which was cloned from a gastric cancer cell line. After the transformants were injected subcutaneously into the nude mice, metastatic foci in the lung were found. The exogenous c-Ha-ras and its transcript were identified in the cells of the metastatic foci. This shows that the expression of the mutated c-Ha-ras is responsible for the acquisition of the metastatic phenotype for the cells. Furthermore, PCR-RFLP analysis was used to determine the point mutation of c-Ha-ras in gastric cancer. 11 of 27 fresh tissues and cell lines from gastric cancer were identified to contain the mutation at the 12th codon, and a correlation was found between the point mutation and metastasis to the distant organs and the survival time after surgical operation.