Download Popular Account: Different forms of the “Fas

Risk factor for cervical cancer
Kirsten Renkema
One of the diseases researched at the Rudbeck Laboratory in Uppsala is cervical cancer.
Almost 100 % of the women with cervical cancer also have a specific virus infection in the
cervix. The infecting virus is called the human papillomavirus. However, not all women
infected with this virus get cervical cancer. What is the difference between the women who
develop cancer and the women who don’t? One possibility is genetic differences between the
women. Human genes are involved for example, in protecting the body by co-ordinating
attacks against viruses. If an attack is not aggressive enough however, the virus may persist,
thus making development of cancer possible. I have studied the significance of different
alleles of a gene called fas in protection against cervical cancer.
It has been shown that different forms of the fas gene result in different reactions to a virus
infection. A Chinese research-group found that a particular form of fas is seen more
frequently in women with cervical cancer than in women without cervical cancer. I wanted to
determine how much this gene contributes to the development of cervical cancer. Previous
work has identified the involvement of other genes. Could fas be an additional gene involved
in the defence against viruses? A collection of blood samples from 576 Swedish women with
an early stage of cervical cancer was available in the laboratory. DNA was isolated from these
blood samples and I identified the different forms of fas in each of them. After analysis of the
samples I concluded that the specific form of the fas gene was not a risk factor for cervical
cancer. Future research will be required to make clear if a certain form of fas can contribute in
combination with other genes to the development of cervical cancer.
Degree project in Biology
Examensarbete I biologi, 20 p, spring 2003
Department of Biology Education and Department of Genetics and Pathology
Supervisor: Ulf Gyllensten