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Gödicke S, Kresbach C, Ehlert M, Obrecht D, Altendorf L, Hack K, von Hoff K, Carén H, Melcher V, Kerl K, Englinger B, Filbin M, Pajtler KW, Gojo J, Pietsch T, Rutkowski S, Schüller U. Clinically relevant molecular hallmarks of PFA ependymomas display intratumoral heterogeneity and correlate with tumor morphology. Acta Neuropathol 2024; 147:23. [PMID: 38265527 PMCID: PMC10808473 DOI: 10.1007/s00401-023-02682-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Revised: 12/05/2023] [Accepted: 12/30/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
Posterior fossa type A (PF-EPN-A, PFA) ependymoma are aggressive tumors that mainly affect children and have a poor prognosis. Histopathology shows significant intratumoral heterogeneity, ranging from loose tissue to often sharply demarcated, extremely cell-dense tumor areas. To determine molecular differences in morphologically different areas and to understand their clinical significance, we analyzed 113 PF-EPN-A samples, including 40 corresponding relapse samples. Cell-dense areas ranged from 0 to 100% of the tumor area and displayed a higher proportion of proliferating tumor cells (p < 0.01). Clinically, cell density was associated with poor progression-free and overall survival (pPFS = 0.0026, pOS < 0.01). Molecularly, tumor areas with low and high cell density showed diverging DNA methylation profiles regarding their similarity to distinct previously discovered PF-EPN-A subtypes in 9/21 cases. Prognostically relevant chromosomal changes at 1q and 6q showed spatial heterogeneity within single tumors and were significantly enriched in cell-dense tumor areas as shown by single-cell RNA (scRNA)-sequencing as well as copy number profiling and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analyses of different tumor areas. Finally, spatial transcriptomics revealed cell-dense areas of different tumors to be more similar than various different areas of the same tumor. High-density areas distinctly overexpressed genes encoding histone proteins, WNT5A, TGFB1, or IGF2. Relapsing tumors displayed a higher proportion of cell-dense areas (p = 0.036), a change in PF-EPN-A methylation subtypes (13/32 patients), and novel chromosome 1q gains and 6q losses (12/32 cases) compared to corresponding primary tumors. Our data suggest that PF-EPN-A ependymomas habor a previously unrecognized intratumoral heterogeneity with clinical implications, which has to be accounted for when selecting diagnostic material, inter alia, by histological evaluation of the proportion of cell-dense areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Swenja Gödicke
- Department of Pediatric Hematolgoy and Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Research Institute Children's Cancer Center, Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Catena Kresbach
- Department of Pediatric Hematolgoy and Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Research Institute Children's Cancer Center, Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistrasse 52, 20246, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Max Ehlert
- Department of Pediatric Hematolgoy and Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Research Institute Children's Cancer Center, Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Denise Obrecht
- Department of Pediatric Hematolgoy and Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Lea Altendorf
- Department of Pediatric Hematolgoy and Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Research Institute Children's Cancer Center, Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Karoline Hack
- Department of Pediatric Hematolgoy and Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Research Institute Children's Cancer Center, Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Katja von Hoff
- Department of Pediatric Oncology and Hematology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Helena Carén
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Center for Cancer Research, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Göteborg, Sweden
| | - Viktoria Melcher
- Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, University Children's Hospital Münster, 48149, Münster, Germany
| | - Kornelius Kerl
- Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, University Children's Hospital Münster, 48149, Münster, Germany
| | - Bernhard Englinger
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
- Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
- Center for Cancer Research and Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Mariella Filbin
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Kristian W Pajtler
- Hopp Children's Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Division of Pediatric Neurooncology, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Hematology and Immunology, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Johannes Gojo
- Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Comprehensive Center for Pediatrics and Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Torsten Pietsch
- Institute of Neuropathology, DGNN Brain Tumor Reference Center, University of Bonn Medical Center, Bonn, Germany
| | - Stefan Rutkowski
- Department of Pediatric Hematolgoy and Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Ulrich Schüller
- Department of Pediatric Hematolgoy and Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
- Research Institute Children's Cancer Center, Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistrasse 52, 20246, Hamburg, Germany.
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