Purpose: H19 and insulin-like growth factor II (IGF2) genes are imprinted in normal human tissues. Recent reports have described loss of imprinting (LOI) for these genes in some malignancies. We therefore examined the allele-specific expression of the H19 and IGF2 genes in testicular tumors.
Materials and methods: Restriction fragment length polymorphisms were examined in 17 testicular germ cell tumors and 2 testicular malignant lymphomas.
Results: All 4 informative testicular germ cell tumors showed LOI for the H19 gene. Five of 9 informative germ cell tumors showed LOI for the IGF2 gene, while testicular lymphomas did not show biallelic expression of the H19 or IGF2 gene.
Conclusion: Loss of imprinting for the H19 and IGF2 genes in testicular seminomatous germ cell tumors may be involved in oncogenesis.