The size of cell-free mitochondrial DNA in blood is inversely correlated with tumor burden in cancer patients.

ABSTRACT: Circulating cell-free DNAs (cfDNAs) are fragmented DNA molecules released into the blood by cells. Previous studies have suggested that mitochondria-originated cfDNA fragments (mt-cfDNAs) in cancer patients are more fragmented than those from healthy controls. However, it is still unknown where these short mt-cfDNAs originate, and whether the length of mt-cfDNAs can be correlated with tumor burden and cancer progression. In this study, we first performed whole-genome sequencing analysis (WGS) of cfDNAs from a human tumor cell line-xenotransplantation mouse model and found that mt-cfDNAs released from transplanted tumor cells were shorter than the mouse counterpart. We next analyzed blood cfDNA samples from hepatocellular carcinoma and prostate cancer patients and found that mt-cfDNA length

SUBMITTER: An Q 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6770274 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature