TP53 gene mutations in gastric carcinoma detected by polymerase chain reaction/single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis of archival material.

TP53 gene mutations, one of the most common alterations described in human tumors, have also been detected in gastric carcinoma, and shown to occur rather late in disease progression. A better assessment of the prognostic value of TP53 gene mutations can be obtained by examining archival material, as this allows stored cases with well-defined histories to be monitored. We performed immunohistochemical and polymerase chain reaction/single-strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) analyses of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded material from nine selected cases of gastric carcinoma at different pathological stages. PCR-SSCP analysis of TP53 exons 5-8 detected missense point mutations in two out of five immunostain(PAb1801)-positive tumors, and a deletion (allowing for a premature stop codon) in one of the remaining four immunostain-negative tumors. Thus, PCR-SSCP analysis represents a feasible strategy for the detection of TP53 alterations in archival material of gastric carcinoma cases.