Project description:Chromosomal instability in cancer consists of dynamic changes to the number and structure of chromosomes1,2. The resulting diversity in somatic copy number alterations (SCNAs) may provide the variation necessary for tumour evolution1,3,4. Here we use multi-sample phasing and SCNA analysis of 1,421 samples from 394 tumours across 22 tumour types to show that continuous chromosomal instability results in pervasive SCNA heterogeneity. Parallel evolutionary events, which cause disruption in the same genes (such as BCL9, MCL1, ARNT (also known as HIF1B), TERT and MYC) within separate subclones, were present in 37% of tumours. Most recurrent losses probably occurred before whole-genome doubling, that was found as a clonal event in 49% of tumours. However, loss of heterozygosity at the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) locus and loss of chromosome 8p to a single haploid copy recurred at substantial subclonal frequencies, even in tumours with whole-genome doubling, indicating ongoing karyotype remodelling. Focal amplifications that affected chromosomes 1q21 (which encompasses BCL9, MCL1 and ARNT), 5p15.33 (TERT), 11q13.3 (CCND1), 19q12 (CCNE1) and 8q24.1 (MYC) were frequently subclonal yet appeared to be clonal within single samples. Analysis of an independent series of 1,024 metastatic samples revealed that 13 focal SCNAs were enriched in metastatic samples, including gains in chromosome 8q24.1 (encompassing MYC) in clear cell renal cell carcinoma and chromosome 11q13.3 (encompassing CCND1) in HER2+ breast cancer. Chromosomal instability may enable the continuous selection of SCNAs, which are established as ordered events that often occur in parallel, throughout tumour evolution.
Project description:We established human colorectal tumor organoids from benign adenoma, primary colorectal cancer or metastasized colorectal cancer. The gene signature of tumor organoids associated with their tumor progression status. We also generated genome-edited organoids from human intestinal organoids recapitulating adenoma-carcinoma sequence. Gene expression signature of the genome engineered organoids were similar to that of adenoma organoids. This result indicated multiple (up to five) genetic mutations were insufficient for gene expression reprogramming of colorectal cancer. We used microarrays to detail the global program of gene expression in human colorectal tumor organoids and artificially mutation introduced organoids. To assess the expression profiling of genome-engineered organoids, we prepared total-RNA from cultured adenoma, carcinoma and genome-engineered organoids. We produced two types of genome-engineered organoids using the CRISPR/Cas9 or lentivirus vector system. Each engineered gene and engineered methods are described as a single alphabet and method name, respectively, in the sample characteristics field. The abbreviations for the engineered genes are as follows. 1) Genome-engineered organoids with CRISPR/Cas9 A = APC deletion; K = KRAS G12V knock in; S = Smad4 deletion; T = TP53 deletion; P = PIK3CA E545K knock in. 2) Genome-engineered organoids with Lent virus vector B = CTNNB1 S33Y overexpression; K = KRAS G12V overexpression; S = Smad4 shRNA overexpression; T = TP53 shRNA overexpression; P = PIK3CA E545K overexpression.
Project description:Intratumor heterogeneity is a major challenge in cancer treatment. To decipher patterns of chromosomal heterogeneity, we analyzed six colorectal cancer cell lines by multiplex interphase FISH. The mismatch repair deficient cell lines DLD-1 and HCT116 had the most stable copy numbers, whereas aneuploid cell lines displayed a higher degree of instability. We subsequently assessed the clonal evolution of a single cell in two aneuploid cell lines, SW480 and HT-29, which both have near-triploid karyotypes but different degrees of chromosomal instability. The clonal compositions of the single cell-derived daughter cell lines, as assessed by multiplex FISH, differed for HT-29 and SW480. Daughters of HT-29 were stable, clonal, and had little heterogeneity. Daughters of SW480 were more heterogeneous, with the single cell-derived daughter cell lines separating into two distinct populations with different ploidy (hyper-diploid and near-triploid), morphology, gene expression and tumorigenicity. To better understand the evolutionary trajectory for the two SW480 populations, we constructed phylogenetic trees which showed ongoing instability in the daughter cell lines.. When analyzing the evolutionary development over time, most single cell-derived daughter cell lines maintained their major clonal pattern, with the exception of one daughter of SW480 that showed a switch involving a loss of APC. Our meticulous analysis of the clonal evolution and composition of these colorectal cancer models shows that all chromosomes are subject to segregation errors, however, specific net genomic imbalances are maintained. Karyotype evolution is driven by the necessity to arrive at and maintain a specific plateau of chromosomal copy numbers as the drivers of carcinogenesis.
Project description:Chromosomal instability (CIN), defined as an increased occurrence of chromosome segregation errors during cell division, is a prominent form of genomic instability (Bakhoum and Avi Landau, 2017). It is the major cause of aneuploidy, an imbalanced complement of whole chromosomes or chromosome arms, which is the most prevalent genetic alteration in human cancers (Vasudevan et al., 2021; Santaguida and Amon, 2015). Importantly, aneuploidy is commonly associated with ongoing CIN through consecutive cell divisions (Shelzer et al. 2011; Passerini et al., 2016), resulting in intratumor genetic heterogeneity, a central driver of cancer evolution and therapeutic resistance (Sansregret et al., 2018; Ben-David and Amon, 2019). Indeed, aneuploidy has been shown to act both as a tumor suppressor and as a tumor initiator (Weaver et al., 2007; Silk et al., 2013; Vasudevan et al., 2020), most likely depending on the specific chromosomes that are gained or lost (Ben-David et al., 2011; Sack et al., 2018; Adell et al., 2023). Despite the ubiquitous presence of CIN in several aneuploid cancer types and its clinical relevance, its presence in B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) remains largely unexplored owing to the impaired proliferation of leukemic cells in vitro and the lack of reliable experimental models to comprehensively assess chromosome segregation in vivo. B-ALL is the most frequent childhood cancer, with 75% of cases occurring in children under 6 years of age, and it is characterized by the accumulation of highly proliferative immature B-cell precursors in the bone marrow (BM) (Hunger and Mullighan, 2015). The presence of CIN and its contribution to aneuploid cB-ALL progression is largely unknown due to the lack of preclinical models to study actively dividing cells. Accordingly, studies of CIN in cB-ALL are limited to the characterization of chromosomal copy-number heterogeneity (chr-CNH) in primary cB-ALL samples, but there is controversy over its presence due to the different techniques used to assess karyotype variability (Raimondi et al., 1996; Talamo et al., 2010; Alpar et al., 2014; Heerema et al.; 2007; Ramos-Muntada et al., 2022). Here, we explored the presence and the levels of CIN in different clinically-relevant aneuploid subtypes of cB-ALL using single-cell whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of primary samples to reliably assess chr-CNH, and by generating a large cohort of PDX models from primary cB-ALL samples (cB-ALL-PDX). Our results in cB-ALL-PDX models revealed variable levels of CIN in aneuploid cB-ALL subtypes, which significantly correlate with intraclonal karyotype heterogeneity and with disease progression. Additionally, mass-spectrometry analyses of cB-ALL-PDX samples revealed a CIN “signature” enriched in mitosis and chromosome segregation regulatory pathways. We speculate that this signature identifies adaptive mechanisms to ongoing CIN in aneuploid cB-ALL cells, which displayed a transcriptional signature characterized by an impaired mitotic spindle as observed by RNA-sequencing (RNA-Seq) analyses of a large cohort of primary cB-ALL patient samples. Our work might help to improve stratification of patients with cB-ALL with different levels of CIN who could benefit in the future from new therapeutic approaches aiming to target ongoing CIN.
Project description:High-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC) is the most genomically complex cancer, characterised by ubiquitous TP53 mutation, profound structural variation and heterogeneity. Multiple mutational processes driving chromosomal instability can be distinguished by specific copy number signatures. To develop clinically relevant models of these mutational processes we derived 15 continuous HGSOC patient-derived organoids (PDOs) and provide detailed transcriptomic and genomic profiles using shallow whole genome sequencing single cell and bulk analysis. We show that PDOs comprise communities of different clonal populations and represent models of CCNE1 amplification, chromothripsis, tandem-duplicator phenotype and whole genome duplication. PDOs can also be used as exploratory tools to study transcriptional effects of copy number alterations as well as compound-sensitivity tests. In summary, HGSOC PDO cultures provide a genomic tool for studies of specific mutational processes and precision therapeutics.
Project description:BackgroundThe Trypanosoma cruzi genome was sequenced from a hybrid strain (CL Brener). However, high allelic variation and the repetitive nature of the genome have prevented the complete linear sequence of chromosomes being determined. Determining the full complement of chromosomes and establishing syntenic groups will be important in defining the structure of T. cruzi chromosomes. A large amount of information is now available for T. cruzi and Trypanosoma brucei, providing the opportunity to compare and describe the overall patterns of chromosomal evolution in these parasites.Methodology/principal findingsThe genome sizes, repetitive DNA contents, and the numbers and sizes of chromosomes of nine strains of T. cruzi from four lineages (TcI, TcII, TcV and TcVI) were determined. The genome of the TcI group was statistically smaller than other lineages, with the exception of the TcI isolate Tc1161 (José-IMT). Satellite DNA content was correlated with genome size for all isolates, but this was not accompanied by simultaneous amplification of retrotransposons. Regardless of chromosomal polymorphism, large syntenic groups are conserved among T. cruzi lineages. Duplicated chromosome-sized regions were identified and could be retained as paralogous loci, increasing the dosage of several genes. By comparing T. cruzi and T. brucei chromosomes, homologous chromosomal regions in T. brucei were identified. Chromosomes Tb9 and Tb11 of T. brucei share regions of syntenic homology with three and six T. cruzi chromosomal bands, respectively.ConclusionsDespite genome size variation and karyotype polymorphism, T. cruzi lineages exhibit conservation of chromosome structure. Several syntenic groups are conserved among all isolates analyzed in this study. The syntenic regions are larger than expected if rearrangements occur randomly, suggesting that they are conserved owing to positive selection. Mapping of the syntenic regions on T. cruzi chromosomal bands provides evidence for the occurrence of fusion and split events involving T. brucei and T. cruzi chromosomes.
Project description:Karyotype refers to the configuration of the genome into a set of chromosomes. The karyotype difference between species is expected to impede various biological processes, such as chromosome segregation and meiotic chromosome pairing, potentially contributing to incompatibility. Karyotypes can rapidly change between closely related species and even among populations of the same species. However, the forces driving karyotype evolution are poorly understood. Here we describe a unique karyotype of a Drosophila melanogaster strain isolated from the Seychelles archipelago. This strain has lost the ribosomal DNA (rDNA) locus on the X chromosome. Because the Y chromosome is the only other rDNA-bearing chromosome, all females carry at least one Y chromosome as the source of rDNA. Interestingly, we found that the strain also carries a truncated Y chromosome (YS) that is stably maintained in the population despite its inability to support male fertility. Our modeling and cytological analysis suggest that the Y chromosome has a larger negative impact on female fitness than the YS chromosome. Moreover, we generated an independent strain that lacks X rDNA and has a karyotype of XXY females and XY males. This strain quickly evolved multiple karyotypes: two new truncated Y chromosomes (similar to YS), as well as two independent X chromosome fusions that contain the Y-derived rDNA fragment, eliminating females' dependence on the Y chromosome. Considering that Robertsonian fusions frequently occur at rDNA loci in humans, we propose that rDNA loci instability may be one of driving forces of karyotype evolution.
Project description:Supernumerary chromosomal segments (SCSs) represent additional chromosomal material that, unlike B chromosomes, is attached to the standard chromosome complement. The Prospero autumnale complex (Hyacinthaceae) is polymorphic for euchromatic large terminal SCSs located on the short arm of chromosome 1 in diploid cytotypes AA and B?B?, and tetraploid AAB?B? and B?B?B?B?, in addition to on the short arm of chromosome 4 in polyploid B?B?B?B? and B?B?B?B?B?B? cytotypes. The genomic composition and evolutionary relationships among these SCSs have been assessed using fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) with 5S and 35S ribosomal DNAs (rDNAs), satellite DNA PaB6, and a vertebrate-type telomeric repeat TTAGGG. Neither of the rDNA repeats were detected in SCSs, but most contained PaB6 and telomeric repeats, although these never spanned whole SCSs. Genomic in situ hybridisation (GISH) using A, B?, and B? diploid genomic parental DNAs as probes revealed the consistently higher genomic affinity of SCSs in diploid hybrid B?B? and allopolyploids AAB?B? and B?B?B?B? to genomic DNA of the B? diploid cytotype. GISH results suggest a possible early origin of SCSs, especially that on chromosome 1, as by-products of the extensive genome restructuring within a putative ancestral P. autumnale B? genome, predating the complex diversification at the diploid level and perhaps linked to B-chromosome evolution.
Project description:Chromosomal instability (CIN)-persistent chromosome gain or loss through abnormal mitotic segregation-is a hallmark of cancer that drives aneuploidy. Intrinsic chromosome mis-segregation rate, a measure of CIN, can inform prognosis and is a promising biomarker for response to anti-microtubule agents. However, existing methodologies to measure this rate are labor intensive, indirect, and confounded by selection against aneuploid cells, which reduces observable diversity. We developed a framework to measure CIN, accounting for karyotype selection, using simulations with various levels of CIN and models of selection. To identify the model parameters that best fit karyotype data from single-cell sequencing, we used approximate Bayesian computation to infer mis-segregation rates and karyotype selection. Experimental validation confirmed the extensive chromosome mis-segregation rates caused by the chemotherapy paclitaxel (18.5 ± 0.5/division). Extending this approach to clinical samples revealed that inferred rates fell within direct observations of cancer cell lines. This work provides the necessary framework to quantify CIN in human tumors and develop it as a predictive biomarker.
Project description:Using 5' droplet-based single cell sequencing, we profiled single cells dervied from human colorectal cancer organoids carrying either APC mutation or RSPO fusion, and paired normal colon organoids for the later.