Increased expression of Beclin1 and LC3 genes involved in autophagy in non-small cell lung cancer patients

In the present study, the expression of Beclin1 and LC3 genes has been investigated in 30 patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Material and methods: RNA was extracted from tumor and adjacent normal tissues of 30 patients with non-small cell lung cancer. After synthesis of cDNA, real time-PCR was exploited for quantitative expression of Beclin1 and LC3 genes. Also, the expression of these genes was compared with the clinical and pathological findings of the patients. the expression levels of Beclin1 (P<0.0001) and LC3 (p<0.0001) genes increased significantly. Also, there was a significant correlation between increasing the expression of LC3 with the subtype of tissue (P=0.01). The increased expression of Beclin-1 and LC3 genes may enhance the process of autophagy and this condition can develop tumorigenesis; however more research is needed to confirm these findings.