Genes that contribute to autophagy mechanism in basal cell carcinoma

Skin cancer is among the most common cancers worldwide. The most common of these, basal cell carcinoma(BCC), is an important public healt issue despite its low mortality rate. Following inadequate treatment, 33% of recurrences ocur within the first year, 50% within two years, 66% within three years and 18% ocur between 5 and 10 years. Autophagy is a process in which, proteins, damaged organelles, microorganisms and viruses are packed within a cell, transferred to the lysosome and digested. Autophagy genes (ATGs) take part in occurence and regulation of this proocess. In cases of cellular stress such as inadequency of nutrients, DNA damage and increased intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), autophagy mechanism is activated in order to decrease metabolic stress and to supply alternative energy sources. Any defect pertaining to the autophagy mechanism has been shown to play a role in several disease processes in humans. Cancer, neurodegenerative diseases and microbial diseases are common examples. In this study, we obtained specimens from healthy and tumor tissue of patients with BCC for mRNA isolation and mRNA expression levels of autophagy genes are analyzed via IFC Controller HX and BioMark HD System using real-time PCR. Of the 72 genes, only 8 showed increased expression. None of the genes showed a significant decrease. The relation between autophagy and cancer is substantially complex. During cancer treatment, autophagy is increased both in healthy and cancerous cells. Large, multicentered studies are integral to state the role of autophagy genes in cancer development and their utilization in cancer treatment.