Overexpression of an elongation factor-1 gamma-hybridizing RNA in colorectal adenomas.

While it is apparent that colorectal carcinogenesis results from a series of genetic alterations manifested phenotypically by the adenoma-to-carcinoma sequence, the early events that occur in the process of tumorigenesis have not been elucidated. We previously demonstrated that human elongation factor-1 (EF-1) gamma-hybridizing RNA was overexpressed in 25 of 29 colorectal carcinomas. To determine if the overexpression of this mRNA occurs early in tumor development, we examined 25 adenomas and corresponding normal-appearing distant mucosae from 20 patients without familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP). We observed overexpression at a level of twofold or more in 14 (56%) of the 25 adenomas, indicating that overexpression of EF-1 gamma RNA is often a relatively early event in the development of non-FAP colorectal cancer.