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Djos A, Thombare K, Vaid R, Gaarder J, Umapathy G, Reinsbach SE, Georgantzi K, Stenman J, Carén H, Ek T, Mondal T, Kogner P, Martinsson T, Fransson S. Telomere Maintenance Mechanisms in a Cohort of High-Risk Neuroblastoma Tumors and Its Relation to Genomic Variants in the TERT and ATRX Genes. Cancers (Basel) 2023; 15:5732. [PMID: 38136279 PMCID: PMC10741428 DOI: 10.3390/cancers15245732] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Tumor cells are hallmarked by their capacity to undergo unlimited cell divisions, commonly accomplished either by mechanisms that activate TERT or through the alternative lengthening of telomeres pathway. Neuroblastoma is a heterogeneous pediatric cancer, and the aim of this study was to characterize telomere maintenance mechanisms in a high-risk neuroblastoma cohort. All tumor samples were profiled with SNP microarrays and, when material was available, subjected to whole genome sequencing (WGS). Telomere length was estimated from WGS data, samples were assayed for the ALT biomarker c-circles, and selected samples were subjected to methylation array analysis. Samples with ATRX aberration in this study were positive for c-circles, whereas samples with either MYCN amplification or TERT re-arrangement were negative for c-circles. Both ATRX aberrations and TERT re-arrangement were enriched in 11q-deleted samples. An association between older age at diagnosis and 1q-deletion was found in the ALT-positive group. TERT was frequently placed in juxtaposition to a previously established gene in neuroblastoma tumorigenesis or cancer in general. Given the importance of high-risk neuroblastoma, means for mitigating active telomere maintenance must be therapeutically explored.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Djos
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden; (A.D.); (K.T.); (R.V.); (J.G.); (G.U.); (T.M.); (T.M.)
| | - Ketan Thombare
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden; (A.D.); (K.T.); (R.V.); (J.G.); (G.U.); (T.M.); (T.M.)
| | - Roshan Vaid
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden; (A.D.); (K.T.); (R.V.); (J.G.); (G.U.); (T.M.); (T.M.)
| | - Jennie Gaarder
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden; (A.D.); (K.T.); (R.V.); (J.G.); (G.U.); (T.M.); (T.M.)
- Department of Clinical Genetics and Genomics, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, 41345 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Ganesh Umapathy
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden; (A.D.); (K.T.); (R.V.); (J.G.); (G.U.); (T.M.); (T.M.)
| | - Susanne E. Reinsbach
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden;
| | - Kleopatra Georgantzi
- Childhood Cancer Research Unit, Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, Karolinska Institutet, 17177 Stockholm, Sweden; (K.G.); (J.S.); (P.K.)
| | - Jakob Stenman
- Childhood Cancer Research Unit, Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, Karolinska Institutet, 17177 Stockholm, Sweden; (K.G.); (J.S.); (P.K.)
| | - Helena Carén
- Sahlgrenska Center for Cancer Research, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden;
| | - Torben Ek
- Children’s Cancer Center, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, 41650 Gothenburg, Sweden;
| | - Tanmoy Mondal
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden; (A.D.); (K.T.); (R.V.); (J.G.); (G.U.); (T.M.); (T.M.)
- Department of Clinical Chemistry, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, 41345 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Per Kogner
- Childhood Cancer Research Unit, Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, Karolinska Institutet, 17177 Stockholm, Sweden; (K.G.); (J.S.); (P.K.)
| | - Tommy Martinsson
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden; (A.D.); (K.T.); (R.V.); (J.G.); (G.U.); (T.M.); (T.M.)
| | - Susanne Fransson
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden; (A.D.); (K.T.); (R.V.); (J.G.); (G.U.); (T.M.); (T.M.)
- Department of Clinical Genetics and Genomics, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, 41345 Gothenburg, Sweden
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Martinez-Monleon A, Gaarder J, Djos A, Kogner P, Fransson S. Identification of recurrent 3q13.31 chromosomal rearrangement indicates LSAMP as a tumor suppressor gene in neuroblastoma. Int J Oncol 2023; 62:27. [PMID: 36601748 PMCID: PMC9851131 DOI: 10.3892/ijo.2023.5475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Neuroblastoma (NB) is a childhood malignancy of the sympathetic nervous system. NB is mainly driven by copy number alterations, such as MYCN amplification, large deletions of chromosome arm 11q and gain of chromosome arm 17q, which are all markers of high‑risk disease. Genes targeted by recurrent, smaller, focal alterations include CDKN2A/B, TERT, PTPRD and ATRX. Our previous study on relapsed NB detected recurrent structural alterations centered at limbic system‑associated membrane protein (LSAMP; HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee: 6705; chromosomal location 3q13.31), which is a gene frequently reported to be deleted or downregulated in other types of cancer. Notably, in cancer, LSAMP has been shown to have tumor‑suppressing functions. The present study performed an expanded investigation using whole genome sequencing of tumors from 35 patients, mainly with high‑risk NB. Focal duplications or deletions targeting LSAMP were detected in six cases (17%), whereas single nucleotide polymorphism‑microarray analysis of 16 NB cell lines detected segmental alterations at 3q13.31 in seven out of the 16 NB cell lines (44%). Furthermore, low expression of LSAMP in NB tumors was significantly associated with poor overall and event‑free survival. In vitro, knockdown of LSAMP in NB cell lines increased cell proliferation, whereas overexpression decreased proliferation and viability. These findings supported a tumor suppressor role for LSAMP in NB. However, the higher incidence of LSAMP aberrations in cell lines and in relapsed NB tumors suggested that these alterations were a late event predominantly in advanced NB with a poor prognosis, indicating a role of LSAMP in tumor progression rather than in tumor initiation. In conclusion, the present study demonstrated recurrent genomic aberrations of chromosomal region 3q13.31 that targeted the LSAMP gene, which encodes a membrane protein involved in cell adhesion, central nervous system development and neurite outgrowth. The frequent aberrations affecting LSAMP, together with functional evidence, suggested an anti‑proliferative role of LSAMP in NB.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela Martinez-Monleon
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, SE-405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Jennie Gaarder
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, SE-405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Anna Djos
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, SE-405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Per Kogner
- Childhood Cancer Research Unit, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, SE-171 77 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Susanne Fransson
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, SE-405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden,Correspondence to: Dr Susanne Fransson, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, Medicinaregatan 3B, SE-405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden, E-mail:
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Borenäs M, Umapathy G, Lai WY, Lind DE, Witek B, Guan J, Mendoza-Garcia P, Masudi T, Claeys A, Chuang TP, El Wakil A, Arefin B, Fransson S, Koster J, Johansson M, Gaarder J, Van den Eynden J, Hallberg B, Palmer RH. ALK ligand ALKAL2 potentiates MYCN-driven neuroblastoma in the absence of ALK mutation. EMBO J 2021; 40:e105784. [PMID: 33411331 PMCID: PMC7849294 DOI: 10.15252/embj.2020105784] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2020] [Revised: 10/19/2020] [Accepted: 10/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
High‐risk neuroblastoma (NB) is responsible for a disproportionate number of childhood deaths due to cancer. One indicator of high‐risk NB is amplification of the neural MYC (MYCN) oncogene, which is currently therapeutically intractable. Identification of anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) as an NB oncogene raised the possibility of using ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in treatment of patients with activating ALK mutations. 8–10% of primary NB patients are ALK‐positive, a figure that increases in the relapsed population. ALK is activated by the ALKAL2 ligand located on chromosome 2p, along with ALK and MYCN, in the “2p‐gain” region associated with NB. Dysregulation of ALK ligand in NB has not been addressed, although one of the first oncogenes described was v‐sis that shares > 90% homology with PDGF. Therefore, we tested whether ALKAL2 ligand could potentiate NB progression in the absence of ALK mutation. We show that ALKAL2 overexpression in mice drives ALK TKI‐sensitive NB in the absence of ALK mutation, suggesting that additional NB patients, such as those exhibiting 2p‐gain, may benefit from ALK TKI‐based therapeutic intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcus Borenäs
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Ganesh Umapathy
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Wei-Yun Lai
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Dan E Lind
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Barbara Witek
- Department of Molecular Biology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Jikui Guan
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.,Children's Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Patricia Mendoza-Garcia
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Tafheem Masudi
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Arne Claeys
- Department of Human Structure and Repair, Anatomy and Embryology Unit, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Tzu-Po Chuang
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Abeer El Wakil
- Department of Molecular Biology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Badrul Arefin
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Susanne Fransson
- Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Jan Koster
- Department of Oncogenomics, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Mathias Johansson
- Clinical Genomics, Science for life laboratory, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Jennie Gaarder
- Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Jimmy Van den Eynden
- Department of Human Structure and Repair, Anatomy and Embryology Unit, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Bengt Hallberg
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Ruth H Palmer
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
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Ball MA, Rebhun WC, Trepanier L, Gaarder J, Schwark WS. Corneal concentrations and preliminary toxicological evaluation of an itraconazole/dimethyl sulphoxide ophthalmic ointment. J Vet Pharmacol Ther 1997; 20:100-4. [PMID: 9131535 DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2885.1997.00822.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
The objectives of this study were to determine the concentration of itraconazole achieved in corneal tissue and aqueous humour after topical application of a 1% itraconazole ointment: to determine the effect of including dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) in the ointment on achievable ocular tissue itraconazole concentrations; and to assess if any gross or histopathologic ocular toxicity results from the topical application of 1% itraconazole with or without the addition of DMSO. The experimental trial consisted of 6 horses considered to have normal eyes. Each horse had one eye treated with 0.3 mL of 1% ultra-micronized itraconazole ointment and the fellow eye with 0.3 mL of 1% itraconazole/ 30% DMSO ointment. The ointment was applied every 6 h for a total of 28 treatments. Both ointments were well tolerated and no gross or histopathologic abnormalities developed during the trial. Corneal tissue and aqueous humour concentrations of itraconazole were determined using high performance liquid chromatography. Corneal tissue concentration averaged 1.1 (+/- 0.4) micrograms/g in horses treated with the 1% ultramicronized itraconazole ointment and 7.9 (+/- 3.3) micrograms/g for those treated with the 1% itraconazole/30% DMSO ointment: there was a statistically significant difference between ointments (P = 0.005) No itraconazole could be detected in the aqueous humour in either treatment group.
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Affiliation(s)
- M A Ball
- Department of Clinical Science, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
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