Transcriptomics in Cancer - Stages Toward Patents in Biomarkers?

Transcriptomics in cancer is one of the newly researched domains because it mirrors all the post genomic variation. In spite of extended studies, carcinogenesis still remains a highly unknown process due to multiple factors that are involved in cancer initiation. Carcinogenesis is a complex network of processes starting from genetic alterations, accumulation of mutation, going through epigenetic alteration and ending with proteomic alterations that can lead to uncontrolled proliferation, differentiation, invasion, and ultimately metastasis. From gene to protein, cancer cells can be studied at transcriptomic level in order to detect new relevant biomarkers and/or new drug targets. We highlight herein some of the cancers that were lately subjects for transcriptomic biomarkers patents, among which: breast, prostate, oral, brain, pancreatic cancer and cutaneous melanoma. A glimpse of the up-dated methodology and analysis used in transcriptomics is presented along with the recent patents that claim transcriptomics biomarkers.