Oncogenes are mutated forms of genes. Oncogenes can transform a cell into a tumor cell. Some tumor cells are benign, while others are malignant. How does the presence of an oncogene lead to the formation of a tumor?

Oncogenes are mutated or deregulated versions of normal genes (proto-oncogenes). They have different types of actions: they favor proliferation, inhibit apoptosis, enhance angiogenesis, favor invasiveness or metastatic capacity. The activation mechanisms of these actions are point mutations, deletions, overexpression, chromosomal fusion or inappropriate expression in time or in cells.

Explanation:

An oncogene is a gene that encodes a protein that induces the formation of a tumor. Oncogenes are derived from proto-oncogenes, cellular genes that promote normal cell growth and differentiation. Certain structural and / or functional changes in proto-oncogenes contribute to the malignancy of the cell line, turning them into oncogenes, these will originate proteins with altered expression / function that will favor tumor growth and / or spread, that is, proto-oncogenes can be altered in many ways and generate loss of control of the mechanisms that govern the normal activity of the cell and transform it into cancer cells, producing alterations at the molecular level such as changes in the position of oncogenes within the human genome, altering their function. Translocations and mutations can occur as initiating events or during tumor progression, while amplification normally occurs during progression.

in 1859, charles darwin set out his theory of evolution by natural selection as an explanation for adaptation and speciation. he defined natural selection as the "principle by which each slight variation [of a trait], if useful, is preserved".