Cells that are tetraploid
have 4 times the number of normal chromosomes in the
cell nucleus. For the somatic cells, having the normal
number of chromosomes is referred to as the diploid
number. In humans, this number is 46. Human sex cells
have a haploid number of 23 and combine with another
sex cell in a process called fertilization to regain
the diploid number of 46. In prostate cancer, cases
of the disease that are more aggressive have cells that
are poorly-differentiated, meaning that their cells
are not similar to the healthy cells. Tetraploid cells
are an example of poorly-differentiated cells; the prostate
cancer causes these nuclei to have irregular number
of chromosomes. A pattern of cells of that is poorly-differentiated
may be tetraploid or aneuploid and will receive a higher
Gleason grade. The two Gleason grades together make
up the Gleason score which indicates the aggressiveness
of prostate cancer.
|
