Analysis of methylation patterns and expression profiles of p14ARF gene in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma

To analyze the promoter methylation profile and mRNA expression of the p14ARF gene in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC).Promoter methylation of the p14ARF gene was investigated by methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction in paraffin-embedded tissues from 76 patients with OSCC and 57 oral tissues used as healthy controls. Expression of p14ARF mRNA was also determined using real-time quantitative reverse-transcription PCR. The methylation status and mRNA level profile of the gene and their relationship with clinical data were analyzed.Methylation of the p14ARF gene in OSCC was significantly increased compared to normal control tissues (chi(2) = 16.73, p0.0001). The relative expression of p14ARF mRNA in OSCC was not significantly different from that in healthy control samples.Promoter methylation of p14ARF may be an important mechanism in OSCC, and its determination may be considered an important tool in the early diagnosis and treatment of OSCC.