13403 results for ""pdc"+"heritage+language"+census+study"

in 20.18 milliseconds.

• International Cancer Proteogenomics Consortium (ICPC): Proteogenomics of East-Asian Breast Cancer

  The incidence of invasive breast cancer is rapidly increasing in East Asia, enriching in younger patients and luminal disease. We presented a deep proteogenomic landscape of a prospectively enrolled early-stage cohort in Taiwan to uncover the etiology, age-related subtype and oncogenic vulnerabilities underlying the heterogeneous disease. Multilayer proteogenomic architecture revealed distinct endogenous and environmental carcinogen-associated mutagenesis, linking APOBEC (apolipoprotein-B mRNA editing enzyme, catalytic polypeptide-like) cytidine deaminase and DBAC (dibenz[a,j] acridine) signatures to significantly elevated hormone biosynthesis and chemical carcinogenesis in younger patients, and identifying a novel subset of high mutation burden and immune escape potentially beneficial from combined epigenetic therapy and immunotherapy. A proteomics-informed classification resolves luminal heterogeneity, defines high-risk recurrent luminal disease and nominates biomarkers and actionable druggable pathways. Furthermore, proteogenomics profile distinguished a young luminal population susceptible to exogenous carcinogen and having DNA repair deficiency. This study illuminates the age-related molecular subtypes and oncogenic vulnerabilities, providing a proteogenomics-transformative guide for patient stratification and precision therapeutics beyond clinical staging.

  Study phs003150

• Discovering the Genetic Basis of Cleft Palate: CIDR

  Cleft palate (CP) is a common craniofacial structural birth defect caused by the incomplete closure of the palate (the structure separating the oral and nasal cavities), resulting in feeding, speech, and hearing problems. CP accounts for 33% of all orofacial clefts (OFCs) or approximately 1 in 1500 babies born worldwide. Although CP is commonly grouped with other types of orofacial clefts (e.g. cleft lip or cleft with cleft palate), CP is embryologically and epidemiologically distinct, suggesting a unique etiology. The risk of CP recurrence in first degree relatives is over 50-fold higher than the population risk, suggesting a strong genetic component. However, there have been a dearth of genetic studies for CP. Three well-powered genome-wide association studies and meta-analysis have revealed only two associated loci, neither of which account for a large portion of the genetic heritability in any population. The goal of this study is to elucidate the genetic architecture of CP by performing whole genome sequencing of case-parent trios in a well-phenotyped, multi-ethnic cohort. 

  Study phs002220

• Chromoanasynthesis as a Cause of Jacobsen Syndrome

  Jacobsen syndrome (OMIM #147791) is a rare multisystem genomic disorder involving craniofacial abnormalities, intellectual disability, other neurodevelopmental defects and terminal truncation of chromosome 11q, typically deleting ~170 to >340 genes. We describe the first case of Jacobsen syndrome caused by congenital chromoanasynthesis, an extreme form of complex chromosomal rearrangement. Six duplications and five deletions occurred on one copy of chromosome 11q with microhomology signatures in the breakpoint junctions, indicating an all-at-once replication-based rearrangement mechanism in a gametocyte or early post-zygotic cell. Eighteen genes were deleted from the Jacobsen region, including KIRREL3, which is associated with intellectual disability. Patients of any age with abnormal immune function who have recurrent or unusual infections, whose blood tests show evidence of immune dysfunction, or who have GVHD, XSCID, CGD or LAD may be eligible for this study. Patients' parents, siblings, grandparents, children, aunts, uncles and first cousins of any age also may be included. Healthy normal volunteers between 18 and 85 years of age are recruited as controls.

  Study phs002036

• Role of the Cervico-Vaginal Microbiome in Spontaneous Preterm Birth

  Preterm birth is the leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. A failure to predict and understand the causes of preterm birth have limited effective interventions and therapeutics. From a cohort of 2,000 pregnant women, we performed a nested case control study on 107 well-phenotyped cases of spontaneous preterm birth (sPTB) and 432 women delivering at term. Modern and innovative Bayesian modeling of vaginal microbiota identified features of these communities associated with PTB. Seven bacterial taxa were shown to have relative abundances significantly associated with an increased risk of sPTB, with a stronger effect in African American women. However, higher vaginal levels of β-defensins significantly decreased the risk of sPTB associated with the vaginal microbiota in an ethnicity-dependent manner. These findings hold promise for the development of novel diagnostics that could more accurately identify women at risk for sPTB early in pregnancy and offer new therapeutic strategies that would include immune modulators and microbiome-based therapeutics to reduce this significant health burden.

  Study phs001739

• A Multi-Gene Mutation Classification of 468 Colorectal Cancers Reveals a Prognostic Role for APC

  Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a highly heterogeneous disease, for which prognosis has been relegated to clinic-pathologic staging for decades. There is a need to molecularly stratify subpopulations of CRC to better predict outcome and assign therapies. Here we report targeted exome sequencing of 1,321 cancer-related genes on 468 tumor specimens, which identified a subset of 17 genes that best classify CRC, with APC (Gene ID: 324) playing a central role in predicting overall survival. APC may assume 0, 1, or 2 truncating mutations, each with a striking differential impact on survival. Tumors lacking any APC mutation carry a worse prognosis than single APC mutation tumors, but tumors with two APC mutations and KRAS (Gene ID: 3845) and TP53 (Gene ID: 7157) mutations confer the poorest survival among all the subgroups examined. Our study demonstrates a substantial prognostic role for APC and suggests that sequencing of APC may have clinical utility in the routine staging and potential therapeutic assignment for CRC.

  Study phs001111

• Base Editing Reduces Misfolded Protein Accumulation and Toxicity in Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficient Patient iPSC-Hepatocytes

  This study evaluates the efficiency and biological consequences of base editing of the single base “Z” mutation in the SERIPNA1 gene responsible for causing misfolding of the alpha-1 antitrypsin protein that leads to the clinical disease “alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency". Samples on which the editing is performed are patient-derived iPSCs from a single PiZZ patient. The iPSC line is named “PiZZ-1”. To evaluate possible off-target editing, 5 samples underwent whole genome sequencing. These samples include: 1) PiZZ-1 patient iPSCs at passage 34 (“ZZ p34”); 2) PiZZ-1 patient iPSCs at passage 42 (“ZZ p42”); 3) PiZZ-1 patient iPSCs that underwent nucleofection but not base editing at passage 34, and then were passaged until passage 42 (“ZZ nucleofected”); 4) PiZZ-1 patient iPSCs that underwent base editing of a single allele (“MZ”), and analyzed at passage 42; and 5) PiZZ-1 patient iPSCs that underwent base editing of both alleles (“MM”), and analyzed at passage 42.

  Study phs002471

• Next Generation Mendelian Genetics: Congenital Hyperinsulinism

  The NHGRI Next Generation Mendelian Genetics project uses exome resequencing to identify variants in unsolved Mendelian diseases. Congenital Hyperinsulinism (CHI) is the most common cause of hypoglycemia in the newborn and it is due to mutations in 8 different genes (ABCC8, KCNJ11, GLUD1, GCK, HADH, SLC16A1, HNF4A and UCP2). It is a heterogeneous disease with variable onset (birth to adulthood) and a persistent, intermittent, or transient course with possible later conversion to non-autoimmune diabetes. Although mutations in the two subunits of the KATP channel (ABCC8 and KCNJ11) account for 50% of the cases, the other half is still genetically unexplained. CHI can be inherited in a dominant or recessive and can also present as a 'de novo' mutation. We became part of this study when we submitted 8 DNA samples for exome sequencing, from patients with CHI of Caucasian ancestry, which had no mutations identified in ABCC8 or KCNJ1, with the goal to identify new mutations in known genes or new mutations in new genes or genetic variants.

  Study phs000539

• ARRA - NHLBI Lung Cohorts Sequencing Project: Genetic modifiers of

  The major goal of this project is to apply second generation resequencing technology to identify disease causing variants influencing pediatric and adult lung diseases in a collection of two longitudinal population cohorts of cystic fibrosis patients that have been well characterized for a comprehensive set of clinical traits. In Phase I, exome sequencing was performed on 43 cystic fibrosis patients with early Pa infection and 48 cystic fibrosis patients with late Pa infection to identify variants influencing the time to onset of Pa infection. In Phase II, additional exomes were added to the study, to reach a total of 91 individuals with early Pa infection and 96 with late Pa infection. The majority of the 340 subjects of Phase II do not have a Pa infection phenotype, but instead have a pulmonary function phenotype (121 severe vs. 124 mild impairment) as determined by the survival corrected Kulich FEV percentile of Corey et al. A small minority have intermediate phenotypes and/or show severe decline in lung function during childhood.

  Study phs000254

• Kids First: Genomics of Orofacial Clefts in the Philippines

  Orofacial clefts (OFCs) are the most common craniofacial structural birth defect in humans caused by incomplete formation of the upper lip and/or the palate. Over 4,000 children in the Philippines are born with an OFC every year, and the Filipino OFC birth prevalence rate of 1 in 500 live births is one of the highest in the world. Genome-wide association studies support a multifactorial etiology for OFCs, but common variants only account for up to ~25% of the heritable risk in any one population. Sequencing studies in diverse populations is essential to fully understand the genetic architecture of OFCs. The study goals of the Kids First project are to sequence a collection of case-parent trios from the Philippines, in order to identify de novo mutations and inherited rare variants, and understand the population differences in common variant signals in the Philippines versus other populations. Approximately 373 trios from the Philippines were selected for whole genome sequencing (WGS) as part of this Gabriella Miller Kids First project.

  Study phs002595

• Tissue and Fluid Analysis in Ocular Inflammatory Disease

  Granulomas are found in multiple infectious and non-infectious human diseases, yet the pathogenic drivers of granulomatous disease are still poorly understood. To enrich for pathologic inflammatory cells, we leveraged the intrinsic immunologic isolation of the eye by examining granulomatous uveitis, a form of ocular inflammation. We performed single-cell RNA-sequencing to obtain an unbiased gene expression survey of ocular immune cells in the anterior chamber of four live human donors with granulomatous uveitis. We paired this with antigen-receptor sequence analysis to identify clonally expanded lymphocytes. Each individual had robust clonal expansion arising from a single T or B cell lineage, suggesting distinct pathogenic processes in each patient. This variability in clonal expansion was mirrored by individualized combinations of TH1, TH1/TH17, and Tregs in ocular CD4 T cells. In contrast, ocular CD8 T cells were more transcriptionally similar across donors. Finally, clonally expanded, activated B cells displayed evidence of plasmablast differentiation and class-switching within the ocular microenvironment. Collectively, our study identified conserved and individualized features of granulomatous inflammation, illuminating parallel pathophysiologic mechanisms.

  Study phs002449

• Whole-Genome Sequencing Analysis of Extrachromosomal DNA with Amplicon Architect

  The study is related to our manuscript entitled "Single-cell genetic heterogeneity linked to immune infiltration in glioblastoma". Using multiplexed FISH analysis of 3-4 tumor cores from 17 glioblastoma formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tumors, we identified two classes of tumors based on single cell co-occurrence of EGFR and CDK4 amplification. Tumors with a low odds ratio for finding EGFR and CDK4 amplified in the same cell (ORlow tumors) had higher EGFR copy number and higher diversity of copy number in cells harboring EGFR amplification. This suggested that in ORlow tumors EGFR is likely present on extrachromosomal DNA. To test this hypothesis, we performed whole genome sequencing on DNA extracted from FFPE slides from 3 ORlow samples and 3 ORhigh samples and used AmpliconArchitect to investigate the structure of the EGFR amplicon. We found multiple breakpoints and high complexity structure in the 3 tested ORlow samples, but not in the ORhigh samples, supporting the possibility of an extrachromosomal nature of EGFR amplification in the first group.

  Study phs003100

• Consanguinity and rare mutations outside of MCCC genes underlie non-specific phenotypes of MCC Deficiency

  3-Methylcrotonyl-CoA Carboxylase Deficiency (MCCD) is an autosomal recessive disorder of leucine catabolism, which has a highly variable clinical phenotype, ranging from acute metabolic acidosis to non-specific symptoms such as developmental delay, failure to thrive, hemiparesis, muscular hypotonia, and multiple sclerosis. Implementation of newborn screening for MCCD has resulted in broadening the range of phenotypic expression to include asymptomatic adults. The purpose of this study was to identify factors underlying the varying phenotypes of MCCD. We performed exome sequencing on DNA from 107 healthy controls and 33 cases. We examined these data for associations between either MCC mutational status, genetic ancestry or consanguinity and the absence or presence/specificity of clinical symptoms in MCCD cases. We determined that individuals with non-specific clinical phenotypes are highly inbred compared to cases that are asymptomatic and healthy controls. For five of these individuals we discovered a homozygous damaging mutation in a disease gene that is likely to underlie their non-specific clinical phenotypes previously attributed to MCCD.

  Study phs000776

• The Immune Microenvironment Shapes Transcriptional and Genetic Heterogeneity in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

  Tumor microenvironment (TME) and somatic mutations drive progression of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Integrated bulk and single-cell RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) of paired peripheral blood (PB) and lymph node (LN) samples from patients with treatment-naïve CLL showed upregulation of oncogenic processes in LN attributable to a minor population of activated tumor cells. A 10-gene tumor signature derived from this population was positively correlated with activated CD4+ T cells and M2 macrophages in the TME. Whole exome sequencing of paired PB and LN samples showed subclonal expansion in LN in some patients. In remaining patients with clonal stability between PB and LN, a T-cell inflamed TME was detected by RNA-seq. These data connect the TME with molecular events in the evolution of CLL.This cohort was later augmented with whole exome sequencing for 15 additional CLL samples. In an integrative analysis of genetic, transcriptomic, and epigenetic data, including the data from this study, we built new models to improve CLL patient prognostication.

  Study phs002297

• POISED (Peanut Oral Immunotherapy: Safety, Efficacy, and Discovery)

  Phase 2 POISED (Peanut Oral Immunotherapy: Safety, Efficacy, Discovery) Study In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled (DBPC) clinical trial, blinded placebo group received oat flour, whereas in active participants, dosage was built-up for over ~ 52 weeks and subsequently maintained on 4000 mg peanut protein, daily for next 52 weeks. 80 (98.77%) per-protocol active participants passed the food challenge at week 104. Subsequently, for 12 weeks, peanut ingestion was avoided in a randomized group of 51 blinded active participants (i.e., peanut avoidance group). 21 (41.2%) participants in the peanut avoidance group passed the 4000 mg double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenge (DBPCFC) without any allergic reaction at week 117, thus demonstrating sustained unresponsiveness. These 21 participants continued oral immunotherapy (OIT) for every three months and afterwards were allowed to continue peanut OIT discontinuation if they passed. 8 participants passed the DBPCFCs, 12 months after peanut discontinuation (week 156), i.e. they achieved long-term sustained unresponsiveness with no allergic reaction in response to food challenge. For detailed description, please refer to Chinthrajah et al., PMID: 31522849.

  Study phs003071

• The Landscape of Antisense Gene Expression in Human Cancers

  High throughput RNA Sequencing has revealed that the human genome is widely transcribed. However, the extent of natural antisense transcription, the molecular mechanisms by which natural antisense transcripts (NATs) might affect their cognate sense genes, and the role of NATs in cancer are less well understood. Here, we use strand-specific paired-end RNA sequencing (ssRNASeq) on a cohort of 376 cancer patients covering 9 tissue types to comprehensively characterize the landscape of antisense expression. Our results reveal that greater than 60% of annotated transcripts have measureable antisense expression and the expression of sense and antisense transcript pairs is in general positively correlated. Furthermore, by studying the expression of sense/antisense pairs across tissues we identify lineage-specific, ubiquitous and cancer-specific antisense loci. Our results raise the possibility that NATs participate in the regulation of well-known tumor suppressors and oncogenes. Finally, this study provides a catalogue of cancer related genes with significant antisense transcription (oncoNAT). This resource will allow researchers to investigate the molecular mechanisms of sense/antisense regulation and further advance our understanding of their role in cancer.

  Study phs000937

• Kidney Two-Hit Mapping

  Germ-line genetic variants identified thus far generally account for only part of the genetic risk predicted for most cancers. A component of the remaining risk may be explained by functionally consequent genetic variants that are individually very rare (or private to that individual's family). While their identification may be highly informative for cancer etiology and biological knowledge, strategies that allow for agnostic (genome-wide) identification of such genes are not straight forward. This is particularly true for rare cancers where sufficient numbers of patients may simply not be available for appropriate statistically powered studies. In this project we have explored a study design based around the concept of "two-hit mapping" using the co-occurrence of germ-line and somatic mutations in the same gene to assist in the identification of susceptibility genes. The dataset includes 54 kidney cancer patients selected for enrichment of genetic disease, that is patients with: early age of onset and/or family history and/or bilateral disease. Germ-line and somatic (kidney cancer) tumor sequencing was carried out. These data may improve our understanding of kidney cancer.

  Study phs001971

• CPTAC: Molecular Dissection of Chemotherapy Response in Triple Negative Breast Cancer

  Sporadic Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC) represents 10-15% of breast cancers (BC) worldwide. Non-specific chemotherapy remains the standard of care as there are no targeted agents. In 50% of cases, pathological complete response (pCR) is not achieved, and these individuals experience poor survival. Predictive markers for chemotherapy have proved elusive, and patients can receive up to five different chemotherapy agents to optimize outcomes. Microscaled proteogenomics (PMID: 31988290) is a discovery technique that integrates DNA and RNA sequencing with mass spectrometry based proteomics. This approach was applied to snap-frozen biopsies obtained before TNBC treatment on a clinical trial of carboplatin and docetaxel. Proteogenomic profiling included whole exome sequencing (WES), RNA-seq, and tandem mass tag based proteomics and phosphoproteomics.The study was approved by the IRB at both participating sites: Washington University in St. Louis and Baylor College of Medicine (BCM), and followed the Declaration of Helsinki and Good Clinical Practice guidelines. The protocol and informed consent documents were approved by Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) and BCM.

  Study phs002505

• Single-Cell Analysis of Somatic Mutations in Human Bronchial Epithelial Cells in Relation to Aging and Smoking

  While lung cancer risk among smokers is dependent on smoking dose, it remains unknown if this increased risk reflects an increased rate of somatic mutation accumulation in normal lung cells. Here we applied single-cell whole genome sequencing of proximal bronchial basal cells from 33 subjects, aged between 11 and 86 years, with smoking histories varying from never smoking to 116 pack years. We found an increase in the frequency of single-nucleotide variants and small insertions and deletions with chronological age in never-smokers, with mutation frequencies significantly elevated among smokers. However, when plotted against smoking pack-years, mutations were found to follow the linear increase in cancer risk only until about 23 pack years, after which no further increase in mutation frequency was observed, pointing towards individual selection for mutation avoidance. Known lung cancer-defined global mutation signatures tracked with both age and smoking. Within study power limits, no significant enrichment for somatic mutations in lung cancer driver genes was observed.

  Study phs002758

• Genetics of Glucose Regulation in Gestation and Growth (Gen3G) Cohort - Placenta Transcriptomics RNA Sequencing

  The overarching goals of Genetics of Glucose regulation in Gestation and Growth (Gen3G) are to increase our understanding of biological, environmental, and genetic determinants of glucose regulation during pregnancy and their impact on fetal/child development. Gen3G is a prospective cohort study: we initially recruited 1,024 pregnant women between 2010-2013 at Blood Sampling in Pregnancy Clinic during the first trimester of pregnancy (median 9 weeks of gestation) in Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada. We assessed 898 pregnant women at second trimester (median 26 weeks of gestation), when participants completed a 75g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) as clinically indicated for screening of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). We collected data for 854 mother-child dyads at delivery (from medical records), in addition to placenta and/or cord blood samples in majority of newborns.The overall goal of the grant that supported data that is included in this dbGaP submission was to discover novel placental factors that regulate glucose metabolism in pregnancy and predict GDM by conducting genome-wide transcriptomics (RNA and miRNA) in carefully collected placenta samples from Gen3G.

  Study phs003151

• Retinoblastoma Aqueous Humor Liquid Biopsy Repository

  This study involves the use of the aqueous humor (AH, the clear fluid in the front of the eye) as an organ specific liquid biopsy for retinoblastoma. This relatively new liquid biopsy platform was started at CHLA/USC and was developed to overcome the lack of tumor tissue -- due to contraindication to biopsy -- for this cancer. We have demonstrated that the aqueous humor is an enriched source of tumor DNA. Previously tumoral information was only available after the eye was removed for treatment failure. Due to the AH liquid biopsy, we are now able to assay tumor derived molecular information from these eyes at diagnosis and longitudinally during treatment -- as opposed to only eyes that have failed therapy. We have demonstrated that using the platform we can identify the specific mutations in the RB1 gene that initiate tumorigenesis in this cancer as well as the secondary chromosomal alterations the drive further tumor growth. This database will provide sequencing information as well as associated clinical information and globe salvage outcomes.

  Study phs003077

• Epigenetic Landscape of Human Parathyroids

  The goal of this study is to produce a comprehensive map of the chromatin landscape of human parathyroids. Data from 20 subjects with parathyroid adenoma causing primary hyperparathyroidism were used. For the sequencing platform, Illumina HiSeq 2000 with V3 high-output kits were used. For the data processing pipeline, reads were aligned to hg19 using Bowtie or BWA. For RNA-seq data, transcript levels were estimated per gene to RPKM using Cufflink. For ChIP-seq and ATAC-seq data, enrichment peaks were estimated compared to inputs or background using MACS2 after merging reads from replicates. For DNase-seq, significant peaks compared to background distribution were computed using Hotspot. For Hi-C data, significant interactions were detected using Juicer HiCCUPS and 5 kb resolution for the merged data from replicates. Chromatin states for parathyroids were computed using ChromHMM based on ChIP-seq profiles in parathyroids of H3K4me3, H3K4me1, H3K27ac, H3K36me3, H3K27me3 and H3K9me3 and the emission matrix from 18 states pre-trained in the Roadmap Epigenomics. Gene expression, binding positions of transcription factor, open chromatin regions, 3D-chromatin interaction, and chromatin states are submitted.

  Study phs003302

• Investigating Genetics in Suspected Congenital Syndromes

  We employed forward and reverse genetics to identify individuals with heterozygous JAK1 variants associated with autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. We first recruited six unrelated probands and seven affected family members presenting with a range of autoimmune and inflammatory conditions. Whole exome sequencing revealed 4 different variants spanning all domains of the JAK1 protein: FERM domain (chr1: 64873438-G>A; c.415C>T; p.E139K), SH2 domain (chr1: 64855641-G>A; c.1516C>T; p.R506C), pseudokinase domain (chr1: 64845529-C>T; c.2099G>A; p.S700N, and kinase domain (chr1: 64838479-C>T; c.2953G>A; p.V985I). We then performed a systematic review of electronic health records of the BioME BioBank database and identified 43 additional individuals with at least one of these JAK1 variants. Comparing variant-positive and variant-negative individuals, our study revealed increased occurrences of autoimmunity, atopy, colitis, and dermatitis in patients harboring these JAK1 gain-of-function variants. We have deposited in dbGaP the whole exome sequencing files of the 43 patients identified in the BioME biobank, as well as their phenotype information.

  Study phs003453

• HiDEF-seq Single-Molecule Sequencing of Single-Strand Mismatches and Damage

  Our study sought to resolve, with single-molecule resolution, the mismatches and damage events that precede DNA mutations. Using a novel single-molecule, long-read sequencing method (HiDEF-seq) we detected base substitutions when present in either one or both DNA strands. We compared the fidelity for dsDNA mutations to that of the same samples profiled by NanoSeq duplex sequencing. We also detected cytosine deamination, a common type of DNA damage, with single-molecule resolution. We profiled 134 samples from diverse tissues, including from individuals with cancer predisposition syndromes. These samples revealed single-strand mismatch and damage signatures. Since double-strand DNA mutations are only the endpoint of the mutation process, our approach enables new studies of how mutations arise in a variety of contexts, especially in cancer and aging.The data available via dbGaP includes raw HiDEF-seq sequencing files (Pacific Biosciences subreads in BAM format), raw NanoSeq sequencing files (Illumina FASTQ format), and raw germline sequencing files (Illumina FASTQ format).The HiDEF-seq main publication contains a supplementary table with a list of accession IDs for each sample's files.

  Study phs003604

• Gabriella Miller Kids First Pediatric Research Project in Cornelia de Lange Syndrome, Related Diagnosis and Structural Birth Defects

  This study involves a cohort of 400 individuals and family members with Cornelia de Lange Syndrome (CdLS) and CdLS-like phenotypes for which a molecular etiology has not yet been established. CdLS is a developmental disorder characterized by development delays, cognitive impairment, short stature, hearing loss, specific facial features, and structural birth defects such as differences of the limbs, heart, kidneys, and GI tract. Our approach to tease out genetic contributions to birth defects has been to identify the underlying causes of syndromic birth defects which are often Mendelian in nature and therefore lend themselves more readily to genetic causal identification. Once identified, these genetic causes of syndromic forms of birth defects can be leveraged to understand the genetic contributions to isolated birth defects seen in constellation in syndromes such as CdLS. This work will lead to the identification of genes critical in human embryonic development, provide novel insights into transcriptional regulation and help to identify genetic causes and candidate genes for isolated birth defects seen in constellation in similar diagnoses.

  Study phs002174

• Single-Cell RNA-Sequencing of Human Prostatectomy Tissue

  The tissue microenvironment in prostate cancer is profoundly altered. How prostate cancer cells and their precursors mediate those changes is unclear, in part due to the inability to longitudinally study the disease evolution in human tissues. To overcome this limitation, we performed extensive single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) to assess the transcriptional profiles of the tissue microenvironment in prostate tissues from prostatectomies from men diagnosed with prostate cancer. For each subject, benign-enriched and tumor-enriched tissues were collected from the peripheral zone of the prostate. Our studies of human tissues revealed that cancer cell-intrinsic activation of MYC signaling was the top up-regulated pathway in human cancers, representing a common denominator across the well-known molecular and pathological heterogeneity of human prostate cancer. Numerous non-malignant cell states in the tumor microenvironment (TME), including non-cancerous epithelial, immune, and fibroblast cell compartments, were conserved across individuals, suggesting that these cell types may be a sequelae of the convergent MYC activation in the cancer cells.

  Study phs003480