Figure 3.

(A) The CACNA2D3 CpG island is methylated in metastatic breast cancer. The figure shows pyrosequencing analysis of 17 CNS metastases derived from CNS metastases derived from primary breast carcinomas. CpG methylation was determined by pyrosequencing and the level of methylation is represented by the intensity of shading in the circles, each of which represents an individual CpG dinucleotide in the amplified fragment. The ER, PgR and Her2 status is also shown for each case. (B) Methylation-associated downregulation of CACNA2D3 in breast cancers is associated with CpG island methylation. The upper panel shows qPCR analysis of CACNA2D3 in a series of primary breast carcinomas (each of which later relapsed with loco-regional or distant metastatic disease). The lower panel shows percentage methylation at CpG9 in the fragment of the CpG island analysed by pyrosequencing.