KRAS and NRAS Mutations in Moroccan Patients with Colorectal Cancer

Abstract

Objective: Activating mutations in the RAS proto-oncogene (KRAS, HRAS and NRAS) play a crucial role in carcinogenesis and drug resistance in many cancers including, colorectal cancer. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the frequencies of KRAS and NRAS oncogenic mutations in Moroccan CRC patients.Patients and methods: In the present study, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded CRC specimens from 114 Moroccan CRC patients were analyzed. To detect mutations in codons 12, 13 and 61 of the KRAS and NRAS genes, the pyrosequencing technique was used.Results: 114 colorectal cancer patients were included in this study, 64 were males and 50 were females, the primary tumor was the most frequent type (78.1%) and the commonest histological type was ADK (77.2%). KRAS mutation was found in 49 of all CRC patients and the most frequent KRAS mutations were 35G>T, 35G>A and 38G>A. On the other hand NRAS mutation was detected only in 6 patients. No statistically significant relationship between CRC patient’s characteristics and RAS mutations was found.Conclusion: Our results suggest that the KRAS mutation is more frequent among Moroccan patients with CRC, which is in agreement with the most previous studies. Further studies, with a larger number of CRC patients, are needed to confirm our findings.