The scientists from UCLA have reported that genes from the saliva may be the biomarkers that can predict the onset of oral and breast cancer in people.
These biomarkers are called salivary transcriptomes can be used to detect cell carcinoma. The researchers have been able to successfully predict the oral cancer growths in nine out of ten people. The UCLA team has developed ways to isolate the messenger RNA (mRNA) from saliva and blood serum. The mRNA carries a copy of the cells’ genetic code from the cell’s DNA, with the help of an enzyme called RNA polymerase. This process is known as transcription and the products are the transcripts.The researchers had collected saliva and blood from 32 patients suffering from oral squamous cell carcinoma and 40 patients with breast cancer. The mRNA from the samples was matched with those of healthy subjects. The results were obtained by comparing between the cancer patients and normal subjects on the basis of their genetic profiles.
Scientists of the study believe that more research is required to refine the predictive powers of their models that can successfully predict pre-cancerous conditions and cancers that are difficult to identify like cancer of the ovary or pancreas.
