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Llano E, Todeschini AL, Felipe-Medina N, Corte-Torres MD, Condezo YB, Sanchez-Martin M, López-Tamargo S, Astudillo A, Puente XS, Pendas AM, Veitia RA. The Oncogenic FOXL2 C134W Mutation Is a Key Driver of Granulosa Cell Tumors. Cancer Res 2023; 83:239-250. [PMID: 36409821 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-22-1880] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2022] [Revised: 10/24/2022] [Accepted: 11/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Adult-type granulosa cell tumors (AGCT) are the most common type of malignant ovarian sex cord-stromal tumors. Most AGCTs carry the somatic variant c.402C>G (p.C134W) affecting the transcription factor FOXL2. Germline dominant variants in FOXL2 are responsible for blepharophimosis syndrome, which is characterized by underdevelopment of the eyelid. In this work, we generated a mouse model harboring the C134W variant of FOXL2 to evaluate in vivo the poorly understood oncogenic role of FOXL2. The mutation was dominant regarding eyelid hypoplasia, reminiscent of blepharophimosis syndrome. Interestingly, Foxl2+/C134W female mice had reduced fertility and developed AGCTs through a progression from abnormal ovaries with aberrant granulosa cells to ovaries with stromal hyperplasia and atypia and on to tumors in adut mice. The genes dysregulated in mouse AGCTs exhibited the hallmarks of cancer and were consistent with a gain-of-function of the mutated allele affecting TGFβ signaling. A comparison of these data with previous results on human AGCTs indicated similar deregulated pathways. Finally, a mutational analysis of mouse AGCT transcriptomic data suggested the absence of additional driver mutations apart from FOXL2-C134W. These results provide a clear in vivo example in which a single mutational hit triggers tumor development associated with profound transcriptomic alterations. SIGNIFICANCE A newly generated mouse model carrying a FOXL2 mutation characteristic of adult-type granulosa cell tumors shows that FOXL2 C134W shifts the transcriptome towards a signature of granulosa cell cancer and drives tumorigenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena Llano
- Molecular Mechanisms Program, Centro de Investigación del Cáncer and Instituto de Biologıía Molecular y Celular del Cáncer (CSIC-Universidad de Salamanca), Salamanca, Spain.,Departamento de Fisiología, Universidad de Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain
| | | | - Natalia Felipe-Medina
- Molecular Mechanisms Program, Centro de Investigación del Cáncer and Instituto de Biologıía Molecular y Celular del Cáncer (CSIC-Universidad de Salamanca), Salamanca, Spain
| | - María D Corte-Torres
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Asturias, Hospital Universitario del Principado de Asturias, Oviedo, Spain
| | - Yazmine B Condezo
- Molecular Mechanisms Program, Centro de Investigación del Cáncer and Instituto de Biologıía Molecular y Celular del Cáncer (CSIC-Universidad de Salamanca), Salamanca, Spain
| | | | - Sara López-Tamargo
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular, Instituto Universitario de Oncología (IUOPA), Universidad de Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain
| | - Aurora Astudillo
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Asturias, Hospital Universitario del Principado de Asturias, Oviedo, Spain
| | - Xose S Puente
- Departamento de Bioquímica, Universidad de Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Cáncer (CIBERONC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Alberto M Pendas
- Molecular Mechanisms Program, Centro de Investigación del Cáncer and Instituto de Biologıía Molecular y Celular del Cáncer (CSIC-Universidad de Salamanca), Salamanca, Spain
| | - Reiner A Veitia
- Université Paris Cité, CNRS, Institut Jacques Monod, Paris, France.,Université Paris Saclay, Paris, France.,Institut de Biologie François Jacob, CEA, Fontenay-aux-Roses, Paris, France
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Fuller PJ, Nguyen T, Alexiadis M, Chu S. FOXL2 C134W : much ado about something! †. J Pathol 2021; 256:1-3. [PMID: 34687235 DOI: 10.1002/path.5816] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Recent studies have suggested that the unique FOXL2C134W mutation, which is pathognomonic for adult granulosa cell tumours of the ovary, is a tumour suppressor gene. In a recent issue of The Journal of Pathology, a detailed study by Pilsworth et al seeks to rebut the proposition that the FOXL2C134W mutation, which uniquely characterises adult granulosa cell tumours of the ovary, leads to reduced transcript levels with the implication that FOXL2 is a tumour suppressor gene. The study provides compelling evidence that both wild-type and mutant FOXL2 transcripts and protein are expressed at equivalent levels. In the context of other recent studies, one is drawn to the conclusion that FOXL2C134W is a gain-of-function mutation whose impact is mediated through enhanced interactions with the SMAD transcription factor complex. © 2021 The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter J Fuller
- Hudson Institute of Medical Research and the Monash University Department of Molecular and Translational Science, Clayton, Australia
| | - Trang Nguyen
- Hudson Institute of Medical Research and the Monash University Department of Molecular and Translational Science, Clayton, Australia
| | - Maria Alexiadis
- Hudson Institute of Medical Research and the Monash University Department of Molecular and Translational Science, Clayton, Australia
| | - Simon Chu
- Hudson Institute of Medical Research and the Monash University Department of Molecular and Translational Science, Clayton, Australia
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Pilsworth JA, Todeschini AL, Neilson SJ, Cochrane DR, Lai D, Anttonen M, Heikinheimo M, Huntsman DG, Veitia RA. FOXL2 in adult-type granulosa cell tumour of the ovary: oncogene or tumour suppressor gene? J Pathol 2021; 255:225-231. [PMID: 34338304 DOI: 10.1002/path.5771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
A recurrent mutation in FOXL2 (c.402C>G; p.C134W) is present in over 95% of adult-type granulosa cell tumours (AGCTs). In contrast, various loss-of-function mutations in FOXL2 lead to the development of blepharophimosis, ptosis, and epicanthus inversus syndrome (BPES). BPES is characterised by an eyelid malformation often accompanied with primary ovarian insufficiency. Two recent studies suggest that FOXL2 C402G is a gain- or change-of-function mutation with altered DNA-binding specificity. Another study proposes that FOXL2 C402G is selectively targeted for degradation, inducing somatic haploinsufficiency, suggesting its role as a tumour suppressor. The latter study relies on data indicative of an FOXL2 allelic imbalance in AGCTs. Here we present RNA-seq data as genetic evidence that no real allelic imbalance is observed at the transcriptomic level in AGCTs. Additionally, there is no loss of protein expression in tumours harbouring the mutated allele. These data and other features of this mutation compared to other oncogenes and tumour suppressor genes argue strongly against FOXL2 being a tumour suppressor in this context. Given the likelihood that FOXL2 C402G is oncogenic, targeting the variant protein or its downstream consequences is the most viable path forward to identifying an effective treatment for this cancer. © 2021 The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica A Pilsworth
- Department of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.,Department of Molecular Oncology, BC Cancer, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Anne-Laure Todeschini
- Université de Paris, Paris, France.,Université de Paris, CNRS, Institut Jacques Monod, Paris, France
| | | | - Dawn R Cochrane
- Department of Molecular Oncology, BC Cancer, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Daniel Lai
- Department of Molecular Oncology, BC Cancer, Vancouver, Canada.,Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Mikko Anttonen
- Department of Clinical Chemistry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Markku Heikinheimo
- Children's Hospital, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - David G Huntsman
- Department of Molecular Oncology, BC Cancer, Vancouver, Canada.,Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.,Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Reiner A Veitia
- Université de Paris, Paris, France.,Université de Paris, CNRS, Institut Jacques Monod, Paris, France.,Université Paris-Saclay, Institut de Biologie F. Jacob, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique, Fontenay aux Roses, France
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