Alternative splicings on p53, BRCA1 and PTEN genes involved in breast cancer

Alternative splicing is a major contributor to transcriptome and proteome diversity, which can lead to the deregulation of crucial cellular processes and have been associated with a variety of human diseases including cancer. As p53, BRCA1, and PTEN proteins have a key role in preventing breast cancer formation, cancer-associated splicing variants of these tumor suppressor genes are potential molecular markers and may contribute to the development of diagnostic and prognostic methods. In the present review, we summarize these tumor suppressor genes at a viewpoint of alternative splicing involved in breast cancer. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.