Molecular investigation of c-MYC oncogene amplification in diabetic patients of Karaj County, Iran

There is growing evidence revealing that genetic factors could be involved in the etiology of insulin resistance and diabetes. Recent studies now suggest that c-MYC oncogene amplification in beta-cells can cause downregulation of insulin gene expression and leading to diabetes. The present study was carried out to examine gene amplification level of c-MYC gene in healthy individuals compared to those with diabetes.

 This case control study consisted of 70 subjects (34 diabetic patients and 36 healthy controls). The genomic DNA was extracted from blood samples using standard phenol-chloroform method, and Differential Quantitative PCR (DQ PCR) was accomplished. Subsequently, the mean Band Intensity Ratio (BIR) of c-MYC to γ-IFN was applied to determine the amplified products' molecular band intensity. The Real-time PCR was used to reconfirm the obtained results.

The mean BIR of c-MYC to γ-IFN was 1.29 in diabetics, whereas in healthy individuals, the mean BIR was equal to 1.16.The findings indicate that the mean BIR in diabetics was almost 1.1 times higher than healthy controls; however, it was not statically different (P-value= .168).

Since no significant difference was found in terms of BIR of c-MYC to γ-IFN  in case and control groups, it can be concluded that c-MYC may not have a role to trigger the disease in this limited Iranian population. Further studies and larger statistical populations are needed to confirm our findings. This study showed that the DQ PCR technique could be reliable to screen gene amplification in large populations.