Ethnic and racial differences in prostate stromal estrogen receptor α

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Abstract
BACKGROUND Prostate cancer incidence and mortality rates vary widely among individuals of different ethnic/racial groups. We identified a relationship between a subset of genes and race/ethnicity using gene expression profiling. Estrogen receptor α (ERα) was selected for confirmation due to its plausible biological role in cancer susceptibility. METHODS Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (Q‐PCR) was used to verify gene expression results. Protein levels of ERα were determined by quantitative immunohistochemistry in a large‐scale tissue microarray study (n = 183). RESULTS ERα was significantly higher in stroma of Hispanic and Asian men than in Caucasian (P < 0.0001) and African American men (P < 0.0002), who are at higher risk for prostate cancer. In addition, large differences were seen in Q‐PCR levels of ERα in prostate tissues of organ donors 16–29 years old who had no evidence of cancer. CONCLUSIONS ERα exhibits variable expression in men of difference racial/ethnic background. Understanding the molecular basis for these differences may form the basis for prostate cancer prevention strategies with widespread public health impact.