Objective: To investigate the hypermethylation status of blu gene promoter in nasopharyngeal NK/T cell lymphoma and its role in the tumorigenesis and molecular diagnosis of this lymphoma.
Methods: Twenty cases of paraffin-embedded nasopharyngeal NK/T cell lymphomas tissues were studied by using methylation specific PCR (MSP).
Results: Hypermethylation of blu gene promoter is detected in 6 of 20 (30%) nasopharyngeal NK/T cell lymphoma. The 6 positive cases were 4 in 15 nasopharyngeal NK cell lymphomas, 1 of 2 NK like T cell lymphoma and 1 in 3 peripheral T cell lymphomas (unspecified type).
Conclusion: Hypermethylation of blu gene promoter in nasopharyngeal NK/T cell lymphoma indicated the inactivation of blu gene and its possible role in the tumorigenesis of this lymphoma. blu gene methylation could be detected in paraffin-embedded tissue and used as a new molecular marker for the diagnosis of this lymphoma.