Genomic structure and alterations of homeobox gene CDX2 in colorectal carcinomas.

Expression of CDX2, a caudal-related homeobox gene, was found to be decreased in colorectal carcinomas. Heterozygous null mutant mice as to Cdx2 develop multiple intestinal adenomatous polyps. To clarify the role of CDX2 in colorectal carcinogenesis, we determined its genomic structure, and searched for mutations of CDX2 in 49 sporadic colorectal carcinomas and ten hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancers (HNPCC) without microsatellite instability. None of them exhibited a mutation. We further examined 19 HNPCC carcinomas with microsatellite instability for mutations in a (G)7 repeat site within CDX2. One of them (5.3%) exhibited one G insertion. Loss of heterozygosity was observed in 2 of the 20 (10%) informative sporadic carcinomas, and in one of the three (33.3%) informative HNPCC cancers. These data indicate that CDX2 may play only a minor role in colorectal carcinogenesis.