Ferritin H and L mRNAs in human neoplastic tissues.

The typical tissue isoferritin pattern varies during neoplastic transformation, usually shifting toward a more acidic profile. To investigate the molecular basis of this phenomenon, we have analyzed the steady-state levels of the H and L mRNAs in several neoplastic tissues. By using specific probes for the two ferritin subunits, we have found, in three different adenocarcinomas and in a case of Hodgkin lymphoma, a two- to four-fold increase of the H and L mRNA levels compared to those found in normal human liver.