Gondo Mastutik - Department of Anatomic Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia
Alphania Rahniayu - Department of Anatomic Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia
Isnin Marhana - Department of Pulmonology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia
Nila Kurniasari - Department of Anatomic Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia
Mochamad Amin - Institute of Tropical Disease, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia
Suhartono Putra - Department of Anatomic Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia

Background: Recent studies have reported that melanoma antigen (MAGE) gene is expressed in a variety of cancers and testicular tissues. The expression of MAGE-A genes could be used for biomarkers with high tumor specificity; however, there is still a lack of data on most solid tumors. The objective of this study was to construct novel universal primers for detecting the mRNA of MAGE A۱-۱۰ genes in lung cancer patients. Method: We conducted this cross-sectional study in ۲۰۱۷ at Dr. Soetomo General Academic Hospital, Surabaya, Indonesia. The specimens were a testicular tissue and ۱۵ core biopsies of lung cancer tissues. We designed the universal primers to bind the mRNA of MAGE A۱, A۲, A۲B, A۳, A۴, A۵, A۶, A۸, A۹, A۹B, and A۱۰ regions; the assay was performed by nested PCR and continued by direct sequencing. Results: Using the universal primer MAGE A۱-۱۰, the PCR was able to detect the MAGE A mRNA of ۱۰ subtypes of MAGE A from testicular and lung cancer tissues. The sequences analysis of individual MAGE A۱-۱۰ showed the same homology with MAGE A from GenBank data. Among the ۱۵ lung cancer patients, ۱۳/۱۵ (۸۶.۶۷%) tested positive for GAPDH; subsequently, they were considered for MAGE-A gene detection; while, those testing negative for GAPDH were excluded. The PCR results showed that ۱۲/۱۳ (۹۲.۳۱%) had positive MAGE A۱-۱۰ tests and ۳/۱۳ (۲۳.۰۸%) tested positive for MAGE A۱-۶. Conclusion: This finding showed that the novel universal primers could be applied as a new tool for detecting MAGE A۱-۱۰ expression in cancer cells.

MAGE A۱-A۱۰, Testicular tissue, Universal primer, Core biopsy, Lung Cancer