Specific differences in gene expression profile revealed by cDNA microarray analysis of glutathione S-transferase placental form (GST-P) immunohistochemically positive rat liver foci and surrounding tissue.

Glutathione S-transferase placental form (GST-P), one of the glutathione S-transferases family of detoxification enzymes, is a very useful marker of rat liver pre-neoplastic lesions. We here investigated the gene expression profile in GST-P positive foci as compared with surrounding GST-P negative areas in the same liver of rats treated with diethylnitrosamine and then 2-acetylaminofluorene combined with partial hepatectomy. GST-P positive foci were harvested by laser microdissection and total RNAs were extracted to allow gene expression profiles to be assessed by cDNA microarray assays. Transaldolase, rat aflatoxin B1 aldehyde reductase and gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase were found as up-regulated genes and regucalcin as a down-regulated gene, in line with findings for hepatocellular carcinomas. The results indicate that the approach adopted is useful for understanding mechanisms of hepatocarcinogenesis and identification of new markers for rat liver pre-neoplastic foci.