Project description:We applied whole-genome single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrays to define a comprehensive genetic profile of 23 esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) primary tumor biopsies based on loss of heterozygosity (LOH) and DNA copy number changes. Alterations were common, averaging 97 (range 23-208) per tumor. LOH and gains averaged 33 (range 3-83) and 31 (range 11-73) per tumor, respectively. Copy neutral LOH events averaged 27 (range 7-57) per EAC. We noted 126 homozygous deletions (HDs) across the EAC panel (range 0-11 in individual tumors). Frequent HDs within FHIT (17/23), WWOX (8/23) and DMD (6/23) suggest a role for common fragile sites or genomic instability in EAC etiology. HDs were also noted for known tumor suppressor genes (TSGs) including: CDKN2A, CDKN2B, SMAD4 and GALR1, and identified PDE4D and MGC48628 as potentially novel TSGs. All tumors showed LOH for most of chromosome 17p, suggesting that TSGs other than TP53 maybe targeted. Frequent gains were noted around MYC (13/23), BCL9 (12/23), CTAGE1 (14/23) and ZNF217 (12/23). Thus, we have confirmed previous reports indicating frequent changes to FHIT, CDKN2A, TP53 and MYC in EAC and identified additional genes of interest. Meta analysis of previous genome-wide EAC studies together with the data presented here, highlighted consistent regions of gain on 8q, 18q and 20q, and multiple LOH regions on 4q, 5q, 17p and 18q, suggesting that more than one gene may be targeted on each of these chromosome arms. The focal gains and deletions documented here are a step towards identifying the key genes involved in EAC development. Keywords: High Density SNP array
Project description:Background: LincRNAs play critical roles in eukaryotic cells, but systematic analyses of lincRNAs of an animal for phenotypes have been missing. We have generated CRISPR knockout strains for C. elegans lincRNAs and have evaluated their phenotypes Results: C. elegans lincRNAs demonstrate global features such as shorter length and fewer exons than mRNAs. For the systematic evaluation of C. elegans lincRNAs, CRISPR knockout strains for 155 out of all the 170 C. elegans lincRNAs were produced. Mutants of 23 lincRNAs have shown phenotypes in 6 traits analyzed. We have investigated these phenotypic lincRNAs for their gene expression patterns and their potential functional mechanisms. Some C. elegans lincRNAs play cis roles to modulate the expression of their neighboring genes, and some other lincRNAs play trans roles as ceRNAs against microRNAs. LincRNAs are extensively regulated by transcription factors, and we dissect the pathway that two transcription factors UNC-30 and UNC-55 control the expression of linc-73 together. Furthermore, linc-73 plays a cis role to modulate the expression of its neighboring gene unc-104, and thus regulates the formation of presynapses. Conclusions: By using CRISPR/cas9 technology, we have generated knockout strains of 155 C. elegans lincRNAs as valuable resources for studies in noncoding RNAs, and we provide biological insights for 23 phenotypic lincRNAs identified from 6 traits examined.
Project description:Background: LincRNAs play critical roles in eukaryotic cells, but systematic analyses of lincRNAs of an animal for phenotypes have been missing. We have generated CRISPR knockout strains for C. elegans lincRNAs and have evaluated their phenotypes Results: C. elegans lincRNAs demonstrate global features such as shorter length and fewer exons than mRNAs. For the systematic evaluation of C. elegans lincRNAs, CRISPR knockout strains for 155 out of all the 170 C. elegans lincRNAs were produced. Mutants of 23 lincRNAs have shown phenotypes in 6 traits analyzed. We have investigated these phenotypic lincRNAs for their gene expression patterns and their potential functional mechanisms. Some C. elegans lincRNAs play cis roles to modulate the expression of their neighboring genes, and some other lincRNAs play trans roles as ceRNAs against microRNAs. LincRNAs are extensively regulated by transcription factors, and we dissect the pathway that two transcription factors UNC-30 and UNC-55 control the expression of linc-73 together. Furthermore, linc-73 plays a cis role to modulate the expression of its neighboring gene unc-104, and thus regulates the formation of presynapses. Conclusions: By using CRISPR/cas9 technology, we have generated knockout strains of 155 C. elegans lincRNAs as valuable resources for studies in noncoding RNAs, and we provide biological insights for 23 phenotypic lincRNAs identified from 6 traits examined.
Project description:Background: LincRNAs play critical roles in eukaryotic cells, but systematic analyses of lincRNAs of an animal for phenotypes have been missing. We have generated CRISPR knockout strains for C. elegans lincRNAs and have evaluated their phenotypes Results: C. elegans lincRNAs demonstrate global features such as shorter length and fewer exons than mRNAs. For the systematic evaluation of C. elegans lincRNAs, CRISPR knockout strains for 155 out of all the 170 C. elegans lincRNAs were produced. Mutants of 23 lincRNAs have shown phenotypes in 6 traits analyzed. We have investigated these phenotypic lincRNAs for their gene expression patterns and their potential functional mechanisms. Some C. elegans lincRNAs play cis roles to modulate the expression of their neighboring genes, and some other lincRNAs play trans roles as ceRNAs against microRNAs. LincRNAs are extensively regulated by transcription factors, and we dissect the pathway that two transcription factors UNC-30 and UNC-55 control the expression of linc-73 together. Furthermore, linc-73 plays a cis role to modulate the expression of its neighboring gene unc-104, and thus regulates the formation of presynapses. Conclusions: By using CRISPR/cas9 technology, we have generated knockout strains of 155 C. elegans lincRNAs as valuable resources for studies in noncoding RNAs, and we provide biological insights for 23 phenotypic lincRNAs identified from 6 traits examined.
Project description:In this study, we have analyzed DNA methylation changes upon aging of human dermal fibroblasts by using the HumanMethylation27 BeadChip assessing 27,578 unique CpG sites. Cells were isolated from skin samples donated by young (6-23 years) and elderly (60-73 years) patients undergoing surgical interventions. Strikingly, global DNA-methylation profiles of fibroblasts from the same anatomical site clustered closely together indicating that fibroblasts maintain positional memory even after in vitro culture.
Project description:The aim of this study was to characterise the genome-wide DNA methylation profile of osteoathritis (OA) chondrocytes from both knee and hip cartilage, providing the first comparison of DNA methylation between OA and non-OA hip cartilage, and between OA hip and OA knee cartilage. The study was performed using the Illumina Infinium HumanMethylation450 BeadChip array. Genome-wide methylation was assesed in chondrocyte DNA extracted from 23 OA hip, 73 OA knee and 21 healthy hip controls (NOF - neck of femure samples). Keywords: Methylation profiling by array
Project description:Cyclin-dependent kinase 9 (CDK9) stimulates oncogenic transcriptional pathways in cancer. Here, we evaluate the activity of an orally bioavailable CDK9 inhibitor, CDKI-73, in prostate cancer, a disease characterized by aberrant activity of multiple transcriptional regulators. CDKI-73 caused inhibition of proliferation and cell death in diverse in vitro models of androgen receptor (AR)-driven and AR-independent models of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). The activity of CDKI-73 was validated in more clinically-relevant systems, including xenografts, patient-derived tumor explants and aggressive patient-derived CRPC organoids. Mechanistically, CDKI-73 inhibited CDK9-mediated phosphorylation of serine 2 on RNA polymerase II and serine 81 on AR. This resulted in reduced levels of anti-apoptotic factors and suppression of signaling pathways regulated by AR, MYC and BRD4, key drivers of dysregulated transcription in prostate cancer. CDKI-73 synergized with the BRD4 inhibitor AZD5153 in cell lines and organoid models of aggressive AR-driven and AR-independent disease. Collectively, our work provides new insights into CDK9’s oncogenic activity and reveals CDKI-73 as a promising therapeutic agent for prostate cancer, particularly aggressive, therapy-resistant subtypes.
Project description:We applied whole-genome single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrays to define a comprehensive genetic profile of 23 esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) primary tumor biopsies based on loss of heterozygosity (LOH) and DNA copy number changes. Alterations were common, averaging 97 (range 23-208) per tumor. LOH and gains averaged 33 (range 3-83) and 31 (range 11-73) per tumor, respectively. Copy neutral LOH events averaged 27 (range 7-57) per EAC. We noted 126 homozygous deletions (HDs) across the EAC panel (range 0-11 in individual tumors). Frequent HDs within FHIT (17/23), WWOX (8/23) and DMD (6/23) suggest a role for common fragile sites or genomic instability in EAC etiology. HDs were also noted for known tumor suppressor genes (TSGs) including: CDKN2A, CDKN2B, SMAD4 and GALR1, and identified PDE4D and MGC48628 as potentially novel TSGs. All tumors showed LOH for most of chromosome 17p, suggesting that TSGs other than TP53 maybe targeted. Frequent gains were noted around MYC (13/23), BCL9 (12/23), CTAGE1 (14/23) and ZNF217 (12/23). Thus, we have confirmed previous reports indicating frequent changes to FHIT, CDKN2A, TP53 and MYC in EAC and identified additional genes of interest. Meta analysis of previous genome-wide EAC studies together with the data presented here, highlighted consistent regions of gain on 8q, 18q and 20q, and multiple LOH regions on 4q, 5q, 17p and 18q, suggesting that more than one gene may be targeted on each of these chromosome arms. The focal gains and deletions documented here are a step towards identifying the key genes involved in EAC development. Keywords: High Density SNP array Here we use Illumina 317K whole-genome single-nucleotide polymorphism arrays to define a comprehensive allelotype of melanoma based on loss of heterozygosity (LOH) and copy number changes in a panel of 23 esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) primary tumor biopsies. Each EAC was paired to normal squamous biopsy from 40328 (GSM266078) to generate the log_R_ratio.