Browsing by Subject "tumorigenesis"

Uterine leiomyomas are benign smooth muscle tumors arising in myometrium. They are very common, and the incidence in women is up to 70% by the age of 50. Usually, leiomyomas are asymptomatic, but some patients suffer from various symptoms, including abnormal uterine bleeding, pelvic pain, urinary frequency, and constipation. Uterine leiomyomas may also cause subfertility. Genetic alterations in the known driver genes MED12, HMGA2, FH, and COL4A5-6 account for about 90 % of all leiomyomas. These initiator mutations result in distinct molecular subtypes of leiomyomas. The majority of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) studies analyzing chromosomal rearrangements have been performed using fresh frozen tissues. One aim of this study was to examine the feasibility of detecting chromosomal rearrangements from WGS data of formalin-fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissue samples. Previous results from 3’RNA-sequencing data revealed a subset of uterine leiomyoma samples that displayed similar gene expression patterns with HMGA2-positive leiomyomas but were previously classified as HMGA2-negative by immunohistochemistry. According to 3’RNA-sequencing, all these tumors overexpressed PLAG1, and some of them overexpressed HMGA2 or HMGA1. Thus, the second aim of this study was to identify driver mutations in these leiomyoma samples using WGS. In this study, WGS was performed for 16 leiomyoma and 4 normal myometrium FFPE samples. The following bioinformatic tools were used to detect somatic alterations at multiple levels: Delly for chromosomal rearrangements, CNVkit for copy-number alterations, and Mutect for point mutations and small insertions and deletions. Sanger sequencing was used to validate findings. The quality of WGS data obtained from FFPE samples was sufficient for detecting chromosomal rearrangements, although the number of calls were quite high. We identified recurrent chromosomal rearrangements affecting HMGA2, HMGA1, and PLAG1, mutually exclusively. One sample did not harbor any of these rearrangements, but a deletion in COL4A5-6 was found. Biallelic loss of DEPDC5 was seen in one sample with an HMGA2 rearrangement and in another sample with an HMGA1 rearrangement. HMGA2 and HMGA1 encode architectural chromatin proteins regulating several transcription factors. It is well-known that HMGA2 upregulates PLAG1 expression. The structure and functionality of HMGA2 and HMGA1 are very similar and conserved, so it might be that HMGA1 may also regulate PLAG1 expression. The results of this study suggest that HMGA2 and HMGA1 drive tumorigenesis by regulating PLAG1, and thus, PLAG1 rearrangements resulting in PLAG1 overexpression can also drive tumorigenesis. A few samples, previously classified as HMGA2-negative by immunohistochemistry, revealed to harbor HMGA2 rearrangements, suggesting that the proportion of HMGA2-positive leiomyomas might be underestimated in previous studies using immunohistochemistry. Only one study has previously reported biallelic inactivation of DEPDC5 in leiomyomas, and the results of this study support the idea that biallelic loss of DEPDC5 is a secondary driver event in uterine leiomyomas.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common types of cancers, encompassing approximately 10 % of all cancer cases worldwide. Regulation of cell proliferation and cell fate decisions is crucial for maintaining cellular homeostasis and preventing CRC initiation, a process in which the Wingless (Wnt)/β-catenin signalling pathway is known to play an important role. For instance, somatic mutations occurring in the Apc gene lead to aberrant activation of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, which further leads to the accumulation of β-catenin into the nucleus where the TCF/LEF transcription factors, including TCF1, TCF3, TCF4, and LEF1, bind β-catenin to activate downstream Wnt target genes and promote CRC development. TCF1 is encoded by the gene Tcf7 that can be alternatively spliced to produce long (p45) and short (p33) isoforms whose function in CRC development has remained poorly understood. Previously, deletion of Tcf7 has been found to increase intestinal adenoma formation in mice with one mutated Apc allele (ApcMin/+), which are predisposed to development of multiple intestinal adenomas. To study how heterozygous deletion of the p45 isoforms affects intestinal adenoma formation and the cellular transcriptome, we have studied ApcMin/+ mice, which have a heterozygous mutation of Tcf7 gene encoding only the p33 isoform (AmTp45∆/+). In our study, we used immunohistochemistry and RT-qPCR together with a single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) analysis. Heterozygous deletion of the p45 isoforms in the ApcMin/+ mice dramatically increased the numbers of intestinal tumours, spleen size and its white pulp areas but it had no effect on cell proliferation or expression of the Wnt-target gene Prox1 in intestinal adenomas. In addition, ApcMin/+ mice with both heterozygous p45 and Lef1 deletions developed significantly more intestinal tumours. Without the Apc mutation, neither of these mouse models developed intestinal adenomas or spleen abnormalities. RT-qPCR analysis showed decreased expression of Tcf7 in the small intestine of the AmTp45∆/+ mice. scRNA-seq analysis revealed that the AmTp45∆/+ mice downregulated various Wnt antagonists and stem cell markers and upregulated several genes that function in different metabolic pathways. Overall, these results support the concept that Tcf7 functions in synergy with Apc to repress intestinal malignancy. Our results establish a basis for comparison of the relative importance and specific functions of the TCF/LEF1 family members in CRC development.

Celiac disease is life-long autoimmune disorder of the small intestine, which is caused by a reaction to gliadin found in wheat, rye and barley in genetically predisposed individuals. Proline- and glutamine -rich proteins cause villous atrophy and crypt hyperplasia with extensive inflammation in the epithelium and lamina propria. Symptoms of celiac disease vary considerably and elimination of gluten from diet is the only way to treat disease. In small intestine of celiac disease patient transglutaminase 2 (TG2) modifies gluten peptides, which causes T-cell activation and inflammation in the epithelium of mucosa. T-cell activation induces development of celiac disease specific antibodies. These celiac disease specific antibodies recognise TG2 and interfere in vitro and in vivo in angiogenesis. Abnormal angiogenesis is typical in many disorders, such in cancer, in which TG2 has a crucial role in the development and growth of tumor. Overexpression of TG2 has been shown to correlate with accelerated growth of tumor. TG2-specific antibodies are suggested to inhibit differentation of epithelial cell, increase their proliferation, decrease their barrier-function and increase the permeability of blood vessels. The aims of the pilot study were to establish whether celiac disease TG2 antibodies affect in vivo tumorigenesis and tumorangiogenesis as well as to try to clarify the mechanism behind the phenomenon. Tumor xenograft model was used in severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice. Human oesophageal carcinoma (OE-19) cancer cells were incubated with celiacs TG2 miniautoantibody (mini 2.8), non-celiac miniautoantibody (mini 6.2) or PBS before cancer cells were injected to mice subcutaneously. During the experiment mice were weighted and tumor size was measured couple of times per week. To estimate the volumes of tumors the following formula was used: π/6 * L* W* H. Experiment lasted for four weeks after which the mice were euthanized, cardiac blood and tissue samples taken and tumours were excised and weighted. Sections were made from tumors and immunohistochemical stainings were done to compare blood vessel areas and to study general tumors'morphology and other parameters. Western blot -analyse were performed to cancer cells. The masses and volumes were clearly smaller in mini 2.8-group compared to control groups and the necrotic area of tumor in mini 2.8 was smallest as percentage compared to control groups. Blood vessel area were smallest in mini 2.8 group. Results suggest that celiac disease anti-TG2-autoantibodies inhibit tumor growth, but the number of animals is insufficient to give an accurate outcome.