Comparison of Nuclear Matrix Protein Composition in Colon Cancer and Dysplasia

Abstract
Abnormal nuclear morphology associated with cancer may reflect changes in the proteins of the nuclear matrix. Nuclear matrix (NM) proteins were isolated from colonic tissue and analyzed by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Several matrix proteins that were found in ulcerative colitis (UC) dysplasia (n = 5) and/or UC cancer (n = 4) were not identified in normal colonic tissue. UC dysplasia tissue showed three specific NM proteins with molecular masses of 49.2 kDa, 20.0 kDa, and 19.0 kDa, whereas 29.0-kDa and 32.0-kDa proteins were specific to UC cancer. Three proteins with 59.5-kDa (pI 6.3 and 6.6) and 33.75-kDa (pI 7.5) masses were common to both dysplasia and cancer tissue. These data suggest that NM proteins may have a role in the transition of tissue towards the malignant phenotype.