Cancer genome sequencing

[Student1]

I need some help with a research assignment, "How do you differentiate between driver and passenger mutations?"

I understand the difference between the two just not the methods used to sift through them.

Any help would be much appreciated

[g3n3h4x0r]

I need some help with a research assignment, "How do you differentiate between driver and passenger mutations?"

I understand the difference between the two just not the methods used to sift through them.

Any help would be much appreciated

 

I'd love to help, but I'm not sure what is meant by 'driver' and 'passenger' mutations. I'm currently a BS in genetics and I haven't heard of these terms.

[pluripotency]

I think driver mutation is going to refer to a mutation that causes cancerous growth, and passenger mutation is a silent mutation. It's simple to find out which one caused the cancer: compare the cancerous tissue DNA to the normal tissue DNA and look for mutations in the base pairs. If there is a codon that mutated, but ended up coding for the same amino acid, then it is a passenger mutation (or more commonly referred to as a silent mutation). If it coded for a different amino acid then it is a driver mutation and may cause cancerous growth.