Project description:Transformation of follicular lymphoma (FL) to a more aggressive disease is associated with rapid progression and death. Existing molecular markers for transformation are few and their clinical impact is limited. Here, we report on a whole-genome study of DNA copy numbers and gene expression profiles in serial FL biopsies. We identified 698 genes with high correlation between gene expression and copy number and the molecular network most enriched for these cis-associated genes. This network includes 14 cis-associated genes directly related to the NFκB pathway. For each of these 14 genes, the correlated NFκB target genes were identified and corresponding expression scores defined. The scores for six of the cis-associated NFκB pathway genes (BTK, IGBP1, IRAK1, ROCK1, TMED7-TICAM2 and TRIM37) were significantly associated with transformation. The results suggest that genes regulating B-cell survival and activation are involved in transformation of FL Expression profiles were obtained from 81 biopsies origniating from 41 patients diagnosed with follicular lymphoma using Affymetrix HG U133 Plus 2.0 Gene Chip. Of these, 49 biopsies were from 24 patients with subsequent transformation to higher-grade lymphoma (DLBCL) (43 with histological diagnosis FL and 6 with DLBCL) and 32 biopsies were from 17 patients without any signs transformation
