Molecular Oncology Flashcards
Oncology
The study of cancer.
Neoplasm
A tumor. A growth of tissue that exceeds that of normal tissue and is not coordinated with it.
Cancer
Diseases that are caused by uncoordinated, rapid cell growth. Malignant tumors.
Carcinomas
Epithelial tumors.
Epithelial
Tissue that forms the outer layer of a body’s surface. They also line your organs, inside of your throat, intestines, and blood vessels.
Teratocarcinomas
Tumors that consist of multiple cell types.
Metastasis
The movement of dislodged tumor cells from the original site to other locations. Only applied to malignant tumors.
Leukemia
A neoplastic disease of blood-forming tissue in which large number of white blood cells populate in the bone marrow and peripheral blood.
Leukemia
A neoplastic disease of blood-forming tissue in which large number of white blood cells populate in the bone marrow and peripheral blood.
Lymphoma
A neoplasm of lymphocytes that forms discrete tissue masses.
Lymphocytes
A type of immune cell that is made in the bone marrow and is found in the blood and in lymph tissue. The two main types of lymphocytes are B lymphocytes and T lymphocytes.
Peripheral Blood
The flowing, circulating blood of the body.
Plasma Cell Neoplasms
Diseases in which the body makes too many plasma cells. Can be benign or malignant.
Oncogenes
A mutated gene that promotes the proliferation and survival of cancer cells.
TSG
Tumor-suppressor Genes. A gene that dampens proliferation and survival. TSG function is often lost in cancer cells.
Cell Division Cycle
The succession of events when a single cell divides, including pre-replication phase (G1), DNA synthesis (S), post-replication (G2), and separation (M).
Class Switching
A secondary recombination event.
Checkpoint
Regulated phases in the cell division cycle; between the G1 and S phase (G1 checkpoint) and between the G2 and M phases (G2 checkpoint).
SISH
Silver-enhanced in situ hybridization. A bright field hybridization method similar to CISH for the detection of chromosomal abnormalities and gene amplification.
TKIs
Tyrosine-kinase inhibitors. Chemotherapeutic agent that inhibits phosphorylation catalyzed by oncogenes such as EGFR and BCR-ABL.
Signal Transduction
Transfer of extracellular and intracellular stimuli through the cell cytoplasm to the nucleus, ultimately affecting gene-expression patterns.
Protein Truncation Tests
Mutation/polymorphism analysis using in vitro transcription-translation systems.
MSI
Microsatellite Instability. Contradiction and expansion of mononucleotide and dinucleotide repeat sequences in DNA caused by lack or repair of replication errors.
Capillary Gel Electrophoresis
Separation of particles through a sieving polymer or gel inside of a glass capillary.
Proband
The initial patient resulting in a genetic study of a family.
LOH
Loss of Heterozygosity. Deletion or inactivation of a functional allele, leaving a mutated allele.
V(D)J Recombination
Normal intrachromosomal breaking and joining of DNA in the genes coding for immunoglobulins and T-cell receptors.
Gene Rearrangement
Intrachromosomal deletion and ligation of gene segments in immunoglobin and T-cell receptor genes.
Germline
Having an innate, unmutated, or unrearranged genotype or genetic structure.
Allelic Exclusion
Expression of a gene on only one of two homologous chromosomes, with the other not expressed.
Somatic Hypermutation
Enzymatic alterations of nucleotide sequences in the variable region of the immunoglobulin heavy-chain gene.
Class-switch Recombination
Movement of the VDJ gene segment of a rearranged immunoglobulin gene to gene segments encoding IgG, IgE, or IgA constant regions.
KDE
Kappa deleting element. A DNA sequence that determines deletion of the IgK constant region in cells producing the IgL light chains.
Affinity Maturation
Selection of B cells expressing antibodies with greater affinity of the antigen.
Trimming
Deletion of nucleotides. Addition or deletion of nucleotides at the junctions between V, D, and J segments during immunoglobulin and T-cell receptor gene rearrangements.
Polyclonal
Having a variety of genotypes or phenotypes.
Monoclonal
Having the same genotypic or phenotypic composition.
Oligoclone
A small subpopulation with identical genotype or phenotype within a larger group.
Fusion Gene
A chimeric gene containing parts of two or more separate genes.
RNA Integrity Control
Amplification control included in RT-PCR to distinguish negative and false-negative results.
Proliferation
Rapid reproduction of a cell.
Chimeric Gene
Literally, made of parts from different sources. They form through the combination of portions of two or more coding sequences to produce new genes. These mutations are distinct from fusion genes which merge whole gene sequences into a single reading frame and often retain their original functions.
