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Transcription profiling of human formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded breast cancer core biopsies

ABSTRACT: The routine workflow for invasive cancer diagnostics is based on biopsy processing by formalin fixation and subsequent paraffin embedding. Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue samples are easy to handle, stable and particularly suitable for morphologic evaluation, immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization. However, it has become a paradigm that these samples cannot be used for genome-wide expression analysis with microarrays. To oppose this view, we present a pilot microarray study using FFPE core needle biopsies from breast cancers as RNA source. We found that microarray probes interrogating sequences near the poly-A-tail of the transcribed genes were well suitable to measure RNA levels in FFPE core needle biopsies. For the ER and the HER2 gene, we observed strong correlations between RNA levels measured in these probe sets and protein expression determined by immunohistochemistry (p = 0.000003 and p = 0.0022). Further, we have identified a signature of 364 genes that correlated with ER protein status and a signature of 528 genes that correlated with HER2 protein status. Many of these genes (ER: 60%) could be confirmed by analysis of an independent publicly available data set. Finally, a hierarchical clustering of the biopsies with respect to three recently reported gene expression grade signatures resulted in widely stable low and high expression grade clusters that correlated with the pathological tumor grade. These findings support the notion that clinically relevant information can be gained from microarray based gene expression profiling of FFPE cancer biopsies. This opens new opportunities for the integration of gene expression analysis into the workflow of invasive cancer diagnostics as well as translational research in the setting of clinical studies. Experiment Overall Design: RNA from 24 breast cancer biopsies extracted with kit A, RNA from 6 breast cancer biopsies extracted with kit B

ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens

SUBMITTER: Budczies Jan

PROVIDER: S-ECPF-GEOD-11001 | biostudies-other |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Project description:Endometriosis is an inflammatory pathology associated with a negative effect on life quality. Recently, this pathology was connected to ovarian cancer, in particular with endometrioid ovarian cancer. microRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of RNA transcripts ~19-22 nucleotides in length, the altered miRNA pattern being connected to pathological status. miRNAs are highly stable transcripts, and these can be assessed from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples leading to the identification of miRNAs that could be developed as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, in particular those involved in malignant transformation. The aim of our study was to evaluate miRNA expression pattern in FFPE samples from endometriosis and ovarian cancer patients using PCR-array technology and also to compare the differential expression pattern in ovarian cancer versus endometriosis. For the PCR-array study, we have used nine macrodissected FFPE samples from endometriosis tissue, eight samples of ovarian cancers and five normal ovarian tissues. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was used for data validation in a new patient cohort of 17 normal samples, 33 endometriosis samples and 28 ovarian cancer macrodissected FFPE samples. Considering 1.5-fold expression difference as a cut-off level and a P-value <0.05, we have identified four miRNAs being overexpressed in endometrial tissue, while in ovarian cancer 15 were differentially expressed (nine overexpressed and six downregulated). The expression level was confirmed by qRT-PCR for miR-93, miR-141, miR-155, miR-429, miR-200c, miR-205 and miR-492. Using the interpretative program Ingenuity Pathway Analysis revealed several deregulated pathways due to abnormal miRNA expression in endometriosis and ovarian cancer, which in turn is responsible for pathogenesis; this differential expression of miRNAs can be exploited as a therapeutic target. A higher number of altered miRNAs were detected in endometriosis versus ovarian cancer tissue, most of them being linked with epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition.

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Transcription profiling of human formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded breast cancer core biopsies

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