Molecular Biology/Genetics USMLE Step 1 Practice Question
A 58-year-old man with newly diagnosed pancreatic adenocarcinoma (T3N1M0) undergoes treatment with gemcitabine. Vital signs are stable: BP 128/82 mmHg, HR 92/min, RR 16/min, Temp 37.2°C. A tumor biopsy shows elevated IL-6 expression on immunohistochemistry. The research team needs to quantify interleukin-6 messenger RNA levels in extracted tumor cells before and after drug exposure. Prior genetic testing excluded BRCA mutations. Which molecular technique best measures cytokine gene expression changes?
Answer choices
- AKaryotyping
- BReverse transcription polymerase chain reactionCorrect answer
- CSouthern blot
- DELISA
- EWestern blot
- FFluorescence in situ hybridization
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