The evaluation of human endogenous retroviral env expression in normal and cancerous tissues of the breast - Research findings

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Hazel

Breast cancer progression is influenced by internal and external risk factors, yet early diagnosis remains challenging for healthcare systems. Human endogenous retrovirus-W (HERV-W) is considered a potential biomarker because HERV-W genes may show altered expression in cancerous cells. This study compares HERV-W envelope expression between breast cancer tissues and normal adjacent tissues. RNA from 46 paired samples was analyzed by quantitative real-time PCR for syncytin-1 and syncytin-2 across cancer stages.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages5

Reading Time13 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Biomarkers and HERV-W rationale

Background and Study Aim

Materials and Methods

Patient samples and RNA extraction

Quantitative real-time PCR

Results

Patient and tumor characteristics

HERV-W envelope expression changes

Conclusion

Potential role in monitoring and need for further studies

article The evaluation of human endogenous retroviral env expression in normal and cancerous tissues of the breast Shaian Tavakolian1,2, Hossein Goudarzi3, Ebrahim Faghihloo3 1The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Parkville, Victoria, Australia, 2Department of Medical Biology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia, 3Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran | | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | | | How to cite this article: Tavakolian S, Goudarzi H, Faghihloo E. The evaluation of human endogenous retroviral env expression in normal and cancerous tissues of the breast. J Res Med Sci 2024;29:20 . | | | | INTRODUCTION incidence continues to grow.[3‑8] It has been reported that | | | | | both internal and external risk factors, ranging from | | | | | Scientists are constantly making discoveries increasing our knowledge about carcinogenesis; however, early diagnosis of breast cancer has still been a challenge for the health‑care system since this type of malignancy is the second leading cause of cancer death. [1,2] Indeed, breast cancer has been identified as the most common | | obesity, smoking, consumption of alcohol, and the level of melatonin hormone to genetic and epigenetic ones can affect the progression of breast cancer.[9‑12] This is the reason why clinicians have tried to find new biomarkers for this health problem. It seems that one of these risk factors is infectious diseases which are likely to mutate | | | type of cancer, and it is the fifth cause of mortality among Iranian women. Moreover, it is responsible for the second and third causes of death in developed and developing countries, respectively, since its standardized incidence rate (ASR) is about 28/100,000 people, and the
the genome of human cells by stimulating different kinds of signaling pathways. Recently, it has been published that either a number of bacteria or viruses can trigger cells to divide uncontrollably,[10,11] but the effects of human endogenous retrovirus (HERV) in patients
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[https://journals.lww.com/jrms](https://journals.lww.com/jrms) | | | DOI:
10.4103/jrms.jrms_141_23 | Background: Both internal and external risk factors can accelerate the progression of breast cancer which is the reason why clinicians have tried to find new biomarkers for this health problem. Human endogenous retrovirus‑W (HERV‑W) can be one of these biomarkers, as it has been mentioned that some genes of this virus are able to have either higher or lower expression in numerous cancerous cells. In this study, we aimed to compare HERV‑W envelope expression in breast cancer tissues and normal ones since its effects on this malignancy have not been clear. Materials and Methods: We collected 46 breast cancer tissues and their normal adjacent ones. After extracting the RNA of breast samples, we evaluated the expression of HERV‑W envelope syncytin‑1 and 2 using quantitative real‑time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in different kinds of breast cancer stages. Results: Data showed that more than 13% of patients had a family history of breast cancer; moreover, approximately half of the tissues were estrogen receptor or progesterone receptor positive. Lymph node metastasis was seen in 52% of the patients, and about 40% of tumo

FAQs

What question does the study investigate?

The study evaluates whether HERV-W envelope expression differs between breast cancer tissues and normal adjacent tissues.

How were syncytin-1 and syncytin-2 expression levels measured?

Expression was assessed using quantitative real-time PCR after extracting RNA from 46 breast cancer tissue samples and their normal adjacent counterparts.

What were the main results regarding HERV-W envelope expression?

Real-time PCR showed that syncytin-1 and syncytin-2 were upregulated in breast cancer tissues compared with normal ones, with statistical significance.

What is the study’s conclusion and next step?

Higher HERV-W Env expression in cancerous tissues suggests these genes may help monitor patients, but further studies are needed to confirm the hypothesis.

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Hazel