| DETERMINATION
OF THE STEM CELL GENE EXPRESSION PROFILE IN BENIGN PROSTATIC
HYPERPLASIA: AN AFFYMETRIX MICROARRAY FEASIBILITY STUDY
USING SMALL CELL NUMBER PROTOCOLS.
Benjamin Grey University of Manchester, Paterson Institute for Cancer Research. Christie Hospital, Manchester |
 |
Prostate-Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) affects approximately half the male population over the age of 50 years and is an important cause of morbidity. The treatment of problems arising as a consequence presents a major public health burden, accounting for a significant proportion of a Urology department's workload and major input from primary and secondary health care. The objective of currently available therapy is to treat the problems arising consequent to bladder outflow obstruction.
Symptoms attributable to BPH are an important cause of morbidity and can significantly affect the patient's quality of life. Treatment is available in the form of medication or surgery. However, such treatments deal with the consequences of BPH rather than the root cause. Therapies are not without potential side effects, which may in turn be more troublesome for the patient than the original symptoms.
Prostate stem cells are believed to be responsible for the control of normal growth and repair of damage within the prostate. Mutations of the genes responsible for controlling these key processes are believed to be the cause of the uncontrolled proliferation of cells that subsequently causes the enlargement of the prostate and symptoms that are seen in BPH. Isolation of stem cells for further study has proven very difficult as they are rare and, as yet, there have been no biological markers identified that are helpful in selecting for that specific cell type. However, we have developed a technique called the Hoechst dye efflux assay which identifies a population of cells (the side population) which can then be collected separately from the rest of the prostate sample.
Progress:
The interim
progress report (.pdf file) is available here.
Research interim report, 15 May 2008.
Project 2007/03