Search Results - EGA European Genome-Phenome Archive

WES in muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) treated with durvalumab plus olaparib in the neoadjuvant setting: NEODURVARIB trial

This submission contains the metadata derived from the whole exome sequencing of 70 samples from 26 patients who developed advanced urothelial carcinomas. The patients were enrolled in the Neodurvarib clinical trial, which compares the molecular profiles at diagnosis and after neoadjuvant treatment with Durvalumab and Olaparib. In this regard, the analyzed samples include: normal tissue and tumoral tissue obtained from the transurethral resection of the bladder (TURBT, a procedure performed prior to neoadjuvant therapy) from the 26 patients (52 samples), as well as tissue obtained from the radical cystectomy (a procedure performed after treatment with the aforementioned drugs; 18 samples).

Study EGAS50000000791

HSC_population_dynamics_KSP_samples

My research project aims to use the clonal dynamics of spontaneously occurring somatic mutations to answer fundamental questions about human haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) biology. The four major questions I will address are: 1. How do age and aging affect normal human HSC dynamics in vivo? 2. How do in vivo perturbations, particularly chemotherapy and increased levels of reactive oxygen species, affect HSC population dynamics? 3. Is response to in vitro perturbation heritable and/or correlated with other features such as age of individual and contribution of the lineage to peripheral blood? 4. How are HSC dynamics altered in people with early driver mutations (clonal haematopoiesis)?

Study EGAS00001002762

GOSH_Paediatric_Tumour_23P108_WSSS_WGS_Managed_Access

We have a case of two siblings (twins) who were born with nodular blue rashes over their body. The first twin had a large periorbital subcutaneous mass which was diagnosed as infantile undifferentiated sarcoma. This baby was too systematically unwell for chemotherapy and died at 12 days of age. The second sibling received two cycles of emergency chemotherapy however died due to disease progression and secondary haemorrhage at 2 months of age. Post-mortem normal and tumour samples have been taken. In addition to placental tissue and parental germline DNA, the goal will be to investigate intra-uterine transfer of sarcoma and the phylogenetic relationship of tumours in both twins.

Study EGAS00001007536

MorphoITH: A Framework for Deconvolving Intra-Tumor Heterogeneity Using Tissue Morphology

This study introduces MorphoITH, a framework for deconvolving intra-tumor heterogeneity (ITH) in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) based on tissue morphology from histopathological slides. The study tested MorphoITH's ability to capture different aspects of morphology and to reflect genetic ITH. The data deposited here is derived from a morphology guided multi-regional sequencing dataset used to study the relationship between morphology and genetic evolution. This dataset consists of whole exome sequencing of tumor from multiple sites and adjacent normal samples which were collected from two patients treated in affiliated hospitals of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (UTSW), including Parkland Hospital.

Study EGAS50000001064

Multi-modal spatial characterization of tumor-immune microenvironments in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma

We have leveraged spatial transcriptomics together with proteomic and genomic analysis to investigate the spatial immunology and pathobiology of DLBCL. We define distinct cellular niches that differ in frequency across tumors, related to both Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection status and the anatomical site of the tumor, and show that residence within different cellular niches is associated with divergent functional states of T-cells and tumor B-cells due to different patterns of cell-cell communication. This provides a framework for understanding stereotyped patterns of spatial organization in DLBCL and immunological interactions associated with heterogeneity in immune cell infiltration and function across patients.

Study EGAS50000001146

Whole Genomes Define Concordance in Matched Primary, Xenograft, and Organoid Models of Pancreas Cancer

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) has the worst prognosis of any common solid epithelial tumour. Multiple failed clinical trials necessitate newer approaches to understand the molecular etiology of this disease. Patient-derived xenografts (PDX) and patient-derived organoids (PDO) may serve as pre-clinical disease models; however, characterization remains largely unaddressed at the whole genome level. We conducted a comprehensive assessment of the genetic landscape of tumours and matched PDX and PDO from patients with PDAC. Our data show that PDX and PDO recapitulate PDAC tumourigenesis with respect to simple somatic mutations and copy number changes, and capture major structural variation events.

Study EGAS00001002597

WGS___Exploration_of__mutational_processes_in_human_cancer_cell_lines

Approximately 25 cell lines representative of 11 mutation signatures have been selected and will be grown from a single cell, referred to as parental clone, for a period of 3 months to allow accumulation of mutations. Following that period, we will obtain 2 subclones from each of the parental clone for analysis by exome-sequencing . In total we will therefore be sequencing 2 parental clones and 4 subclones per cell line for approximately 25 cell lines. Once the data has been analysed and the potential ongoing mutation processes determined, we will perform whole-genome sequencing of the parental clones and subclones of the candidate cell lines.

Study EGAS00001002680

Exome-wide analysis identifies three low-frequency missense variants associated with pancreatic cancer risk in Chinese populations

Germline coding variants have not been systematically investigated for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Here, we report an exome-wide investigation using the Illumina Human Exome Beadchip with 943 PDAC cases and 3,908 controls in the Chinese population, followed by two independent replicate samples including 2,142 cases and 4,697 controls. We identify three low-frequency missense variants associated with the PDAC risk: rs34309238 in PKN1 (OR = 1.77, 95% CI: 1.48-2.12, P = 5.35 X 10-10), rs2242241 in DOK2 (OR = 1.85, 95% CI: 1.50-2.27, P = 4.34 X 10-9) and rs183117027 in APOB (OR = 2.34, 95% CI: 1.72-3.16, P = 4.21 X 10-8).

Study EGAS00001003040

HSC_population_dynamics___CB001_samples

My research project aims to use the clonal dynamics of spontaneously occurring somatic mutations to answer fundamental questions about human haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) biology. The four major questions I will address are: 1. How do age and aging affect normal human HSC dynamics in vivo? 2. How do in vivo perturbations, particularly chemotherapy and increased levels of reactive oxygen species, affect HSC population dynamics? 3. Is response to in vitro perturbation heritable and/or correlated with other features such as age of individual and contribution of the lineage to peripheral blood? 4. How are HSC dynamics altered in people with early driver mutations (clonal haematopoiesis)?

Study EGAS00001003397

Genomic analysis Nasopharyngeal cancer through whole exome sequencing and whole genomic sequencing.

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a squamous-cell carcinoma and has remarkable ethnic and geographic distribution, with a high prevalence in southern China, southeast Asia, northern Africa and Alaska. Although there are previous studies implicated NF-κB pathway play an important role in NPC. Newer research also found several important cellular processes and pathways in NPC, including chromatin modification, ERBB-PI3K signaling and autophagy machinery. Put these studies together, although, NPC is still poorly understood at the genetic level. Here we determined the mutational landscape of 553 cases with NPC using whole-genomic and whole-exome sequencing. These approaches revealed a distinct mutational signature and significantly mutated genes.

Study EGAS00001002788

HSC_population_dynamics___LEUK4_samples

My research project aims to use the clonal dynamics of spontaneously occurring somatic mutations to answer fundamental questions about human haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) biology. The four major questions I will address are: 1. How do age and aging affect normal human HSC dynamics in vivo? 2. How do in vivo perturbations, particularly chemotherapy and increased levels of reactive oxygen species, affect HSC population dynamics? 3. Is response to in vitro perturbation heritable and/or correlated with other features such as age of individual and contribution of the lineage to peripheral blood? 4. How are HSC dynamics altered in people with early driver mutations (clonal haematopoiesis)?

Study EGAS00001004247

Diet driven microbial ecology underpins associations between cancer immunotherapy outcomes and the gut microbiome

This study profiled baseline gut (fecal) microbiota signatures and dietary patterns of 103 trial patients from Australia and the Netherlands treated with neoadjuvant ICIs for high risk resectable metastatic melanoma and performed an integrated analysis with data from 115 patients with melanoma treated with ICIs in the United States. We observed geographically distinct microbial signatures of response and immune-related adverse events. Overall, response rates were higher in Ruminococcaceae-dominated microbiomes than in Bacteroidaceae-dominated microbiomes. Poor response was associated with lower fiber and omega 3 fatty acid consumption and elevated levels of C-reactive protein in the peripheral circulation at baseline.

Study EGAS00001006982

WGS of TNBC PDXs

WGS data relative to 36 triple negative breast cancer PDX models.

Dataset EGAD00001008535

Integrative genome profiling in AML

AML emerges as a consequence of accumulating independent genetic aberrations that direct regulation and/or dysfunction of genes resulting in aberrant activation of signalling pathways, resistance to apoptosis and uncontrolled proliferation. Given the significant heterogeneity of AML genomes, AML patients demonstrate a highly variable response rate and poor median survival in response to current chemotherapy regimens. For the past 4 years we have conducted gene expression profiling on purified bone marrow populations equating to normal haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells from healthy subjects and patients with de novo AML in order to identify AML signatures of aberrantly expressed genes in cancer versus normal. We are now applying a series of bioinformatic methodologies combined with clinical and conventional diagnostic data to establish novel genomics strategies for improved prognostication of AML. Additionally, we use our AML signatures to unravel oncogenic signalling pathway activities in AML patients and test inhibitory drugs for these pathways inn preclinical therapeutic programmes. We consider that superimposing GEP and clinical data for our AML patient cohort with additional data on their mutational status will significantly improve the prognostic power of the study as well as unravel yet unknown mutations associated with aberrant signalling activities of oncogenic pathways.

Dataset EGAD00001001873

SS18-SSX-mediated hijacking of BAF complexes drives synovial sarcoma

Synovial sarcoma (SS) is defined by a recurrent t(x;18) chromosomal translocation, which produces the hallmark SS18-SSX oncogenic fusion. Incorporation of SS18-SSX into BAF complexes renders BAF complexes aberrant in two distinct manners: the addition of 78aa of SSX onto SS18, and concomitant loss of BAF47 assembly. However, the importance and functional contributions of each of these perturbations on BAF complex targeting and gene expression regulation remain unclear. Here we use an integrative set of genomic approaches in human cancer cell lines and primary tumor samples to define the mechanistic consequences of the SS18-SSX fusion oncoprotein. We find that SS18-SSX hijacks BAF complexes to broad polycomb domains to activate bivalent genes, driving a unique gene expression program distinct from other loss-of-function BAF complex malignancies. Importantly, restoration of BAF47 rescues enhancer activation but is dispensable for proliferative arrest in cell lines. These results demonstrate that gain-of-function SS18-SSX-mediated BAF complex targeting and gene activation is the driving event in SS, and present a mechanism by which distinct functions of BAF complexes can be co-opted to drive oncogenesis.

Dataset EGAD00001004135

Development, maturation and maintenance of human prostate inferred from somatic mutations

Stem cells within prostate epithelium frequently undergo malignant transformation, but there is limited information on their clonal dynamics and mutation burden in healthy human prostates. We sequenced whole genomes from 409 microdissections of prostate epithelium across 8 donors, using phylogenetic reconstruction with spatial mapping in a 59-year-old man’s prostate to provide high-resolution reconstruction of tissue dynamics across the lifespan. Somatic mutation burden increases linearly with age, at ~16 mutations/year/clone, and is higher in peripheral than peri-urethral regions. The 24-30 independent glandular subunits are established as rudimentary ductal structures during fetal development by 5-10 embryonic cells each. Puberty induces formation of further side branches and terminal acini by local stem cells disseminated through the rudimentary ducts during development. During adult tissue maintenance, clonal expansions are small, with limited geographic scope and minimal migration. Driver mutations are rare in normal ageing prostate epithelium, but the one canonical driver we did observe generated a sizable intraepithelial clonal expansion. By resolving unbiased, continuously occurring lineage-marking mutations, we define stem cell dynamics through embryogenesis, puberty and ageing, with relevance for prostate cancer.

Dataset EGAD00001006591

Somatic mutant selection is altered by prior NOTCH1 mutation in ageing esophageal epithelium

Authors: Charlotte King1, Emilie Abbie1, Joanna C. Fowler1, Irina Abnizova1, Roshan K. Sood1, Swee Hoe Ong1, Michael W. J. Hall1,2, Faye Lynch-Williams3, Benjamin A. Hall4, Philip H. Jones1,2,5 Abstract: In cancer evolution, genome alterations often occur in a specific order, implying selection depends on the prior clonal genotype 1-3. It is unknown if similar constraints operate in normal epithelia. Here, we mapped mutations in normal mid-esophagus of aged UK subjects. Mutant NOTCH1 clones colonized most of the epithelium by age 60 and above 70 tissue was saturated with mutants under strong competitive selection. Mutant TP53 was more strongly selected in donors over 60 years of age. Samples predominantly mutant for NOTCH1 showed increased selection of NOTCH2 mutants and weaker selection of mutant TP53 compared with samples that were mostly NOTCH1 wild type. In mouse esophagus lacking Notch1 we observed strong selection of mutant Notch2 and other genes not selected in wild type esophagus. In normal ageing esophagus, the first driver mutation may change the trajectory of subsequent somatic evolution by altering mutant selection.

Dataset EGAD00001015261

Single-Cell Mitochondrial Mutation Lineage Tracing of Non-Dysplastic and Dysplastic Barrett's Esophagus

This study addresses a critical knowledge gap in understanding Barrett's esophagus (BE), a common metaplastic condition and precursor to esophageal adenocarcinoma, by identifying lineage connections and cell states underlying its development and malignant transformation. We collected biopsies from 13 Barrett's esophagus patients undergoing routine surveillance endoscopy, sampling metaplastic tissue alongside normal squamous esophagus and gastric cardia tissues when clinically appropriate. Our novel approach integrated single-cell RNA sequencing of nearly 180,000 cells with mitochondrial DNA mutation analysis for lineage tracing, coupled with spatial transcriptomics and comprehensive whole-exome sequencing. For one patient with high-grade dysplasia, we performed detailed whole-exome sequencing analysis at 100x coverage on dissociated Barrett's esophagus cells alongside matched normal esophagus and gastric cardia tissues. This genomic profiling revealed critical genetic drivers of malignant transformation, including a truncating mutation in the mutation cluster region of APC (a negative WNT regulator), mutations in the tumor suppressor genes CDKN2A and TP53, and significant copy number alterations including loss of CDKN2A on chromosome 9. These genetic alterations corresponded with the transcriptional changes observed in our single-cell data, particularly WNT pathway dysregulation and the expansion of LGR5-expressing stem cells, providing molecular evidence for how single clones can initiate the dysplastic transformation. Data deposited in dbGaP consist specifically of the whole-exome sequencing raw files, processed variant calls, and copy number analyses from the single patient with high-grade dysplasia and matched normal esophagus and stomach control tissue. Whole exome sequencing was performed on an Illumina NovaSeq 6000. Sequencing data was preprocessed following the Genome Analysis Toolkit's (GATK) Best Practices. Sequencing data was analyzed with Mutect2 (GATK, v4.2.5.0) to identify short somatic mutations including single-nucleotide polymorphisms and insertions and deletions. The Barrett's esophagus sample was run with the two matched normals, as well as the publicly available germline resource somatic-hg38_af-only-gnomad.hg38.vcf.gz (GATK). Somatic variant calls were filtered using FilterMutectCalls (GATK) and loaded into the Integrative Genomics Viewer (v2.12.3) for identification of high-quality variants in known esophageal adenocarcinoma regulators. Copy number alterations in the Barrett's esophagus sample were estimated using CNVkit (v0.9.9). CNV, Mutect2, and SVC analyses will be made available through dbGAP. Copy number alterations in the Barrett's esophagus sample were estimated using CNVkit (v0.9.9) with the default run settings; a pooled reference was generated from the normal esophagus and stomach samples. Copy number results were plotted directly within CNVkit using the function scatter.

Study phs003949

Evolution of an adenomacarcinoma in response to selection by targeted kinase inhibitors

Background - Adenocarcinomas of the tongue are rare and represent the minority (20-25%) of salivary gland tumors affecting the tongue. We investigated the utility of massively parallel sequencing to characterize an adenocarcinoma of the tongue, before and after treatment. Results - In the pre-treatment tumor we identified 7,629 genes within regions of copy number gain. 1,078 genes exhibited increased expression relative to the blood and unrelated tumors and four genes contained somatic protein-coding mutations. Our analysis suggested the tumor cells were driven by the RET oncogene. Genes whose protein products are targeted by the RET inhibitors sunitinib and sorafenib correlated with being amplified and or highly expressed. Consistent with our observations administration of sunitinib was associated with stable disease lasting 4 months, after which the lung lesions began to grow. Administration of sorafenib and sulindac provided disease stabilization for an additional 3 months after which the cancer progressed and new lesions appeared. A recurring metastasis possessed 7,288 genes within copy number amplicons, 385 genes exhibiting increased expression relative to other tumours and 9 new somatic protein coding mutations. The observed mutations and amplif ications were consistent with therapeutic resistance arising through activation of the MAPK and AKT pathways. Conclusions - We conclude that complete genomic characterization of a rare tumour has the potential to aid in clinical decision making and identifying therapeutic approaches where no established treatment protocols exist. These results also provide direct in-vivo genomic evidence for mutational evolution within a tumor under drug selection and potential mechanisms of drug resistance accrual.

Study EGAS00000000074

STAMPEED: Whole Genome Association Analysis of Hematopoietic Cell Transplant (HCT) Outcomes

This retrospective cohort study was designed to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that are associated with complications after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). Validated discoveries provide information to improve risk assessment, counseling and treatment planning and to direct future mechanistic studies of the genes and pathways that influence outcomes, thereby providing insight and rationale for new targeted therapies. The study was conducted with the use of 3 different approaches. (1) We used GWAS discovery and replication analyses to identify SNPs variants associated with outcomes after HCT. (2) We tested SNP alleles in HLA-matched sibling donors and recipients to determine whether mismatching in the recipient is associated with graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) or the risk of recurrent malignancy after HCT. Such associations would suggest that the peptide encoded by the SNP allele functions as a minor histocompatibility antigen. (3) We performed in silico candidate SNP studies to determine the validity of previously published results showing associations with outcomes after HCT. The study population represents a large cohort from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and consists of 4,471 recipients and 4,628 donors containing 4,258 recipient-donor pairs. Recipients suffered from a hematologic malignancy or myelodysplastic syndrome and were treated in a highly structured clinical research environment with comprehensive monitoring and systematic data recording. We used proportional hazards analyses to test for associations with acute and chronic GVHD, acute kidney injury, gram-negative bacteremia, invasive fungal disease, CMV infection and disease, recurrent malignancy, death not attributable to recurrent malignancy, and death after recurrent or progressive malignancy.

Study phs001918

eMERGE: Genetics of Complex Pediatric Disorders from the Center for Applied Genomics

The Center for Applied Genomics (CAG) is a specialized Center of Emphasis at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) with the primary goal of translating basic research findings to medical innovations. The mission of CAG is to develop new and better ways to diagnose and treat children affected by rare and complex medical disorders. We aim to discover genetic causes for the most prevalent diseases of childhood including asthma, autism, diabetes, epilepsy, obesity, schizophrenia, pediatric cancer, and a range of rare diseases. Ultimately, our objective is to generate new diagnostic tests and to guide physicians to the most appropriate therapies. The CAG is one of the world's largest genetics research programs in pediatrics, and the only center at a pediatric hospital to have established a large-scale biobank of genotyped samples. The electronic Medical Records and Genomics (eMERGE) Network is a consortium of 9 clinical sites with EMR linked DNA biobanks, including Northwestern University and its NUgene biobank, funded by the NHGRI (National Human Genome Research Institute) to investigate the use of electronic medical record systems for genomic research. The goal of eMERGE is to conduct genome-wide association studies in approximately 100,000 individuals using EMR-derived phenotypes and DNA from linked biorepositories. Using electronic phenotyping methods, the consortium has been and is using DNA samples from all participating sites to explore the genetic determinants of approximately 80 phenotypes, including both diseases and traits, for which the electronic phenotyping algorithms have or are being published on PheKB.org.

Study phs001165

Spatiotemporal evolution and inter-patient heterogeneity in primary and recurrent/metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Head and neck cancer squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) are heterogeneous in terms of origin and aetiology. In addition, there is uncertainty about the spatiotemporal genetic evolution from initial diagnosis to recurrence/metastasis (R/M) after primary treatments and further disease progression following systemic treatment. Changes in the genetic profile have implications on the selection of appropriate treatments for patients, especially in the era of targeted therapies and immunotherapies. Here, we analysed a cohort of 11 HNSCC patients with metachronous R/M, among whom nine had paired primary and R/M samples suitable for next-generation sequencing (multiple R/M samples collected at different time points were available for some of the patients). At the genomic level, the R/M samples shared a fraction of the somatic single nucleotide variants (SNVs) with the index primary tumours, but they also acquired many additional mutations, while losing only a few others. A similar behaviour was also observed when examining the changes of mutational signatures between primary and R/M samples. Overall, R/M appeared thus more genetically diverse than the respective primary tumours. The transcriptomic analysis showed that R/M samples had lower immune cell infiltration and several genes related to immune response were significantly downregulated compared to the primary samples. Our results underline the importance of analysing multiple samples per patient to obtain a more complete picture of the patient’s tumour and advocates a re-biopsy in the event of R/M and treatment failure, in order to select the most appropriate therapeutic strategy.

Study EGAS00001007464

High-Resolution Spatial Transcriptomics Uncover Epidermal-Dermal Divergences in Merkel Cell Carcinoma: Spatial Context Reshapes the Gene Expression Landscape

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is an aggressive malignancy with neuroendocrine differentiation marked by high plasticity, often manifesting as rapid therapy resistance. Although the cell-of-origin is presumed to be epithelial, epidermal localization of MCC is rarely observed, largely because in situ MCC is typically an incidental finding. Nevertheless, a subset of MCC tumors exhibits epidermotropism, wherein tumor cells are present in the epidermis. The behavior of cancer cells is profoundly influenced by the tumor microenvironment and interactions with neighboring cells. Notably, the normal counterparts of the cancer’s cell-of-origin have been shown to attenuate tumor aggressiveness. Thus, epidermotropic MCC presents a unique opportunity to explore the potential role of surrounding keratinocytes in modulating tumor cell behavior. While the epidermotropic tumor nests share histological resemblance with their dermal counterparts, their transcriptomic profiles remain unexplored. Here, we employed high-definition spatial and single cell transcriptomics to dissect the gene expression profiles of epidermotropic MCC cells, comparing them to MCC cells in the tumor core and those adjacent to blood vessels. Notably, epidermotropic MCC cells exhibit a transcriptomic signature reminiscent of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, characterized by upregulation of genes encoding keratins, S100A proteins, as well as calmodulin-like proteins 3 and 5. Mechanistically, this keratinocytic differentiation is associated with enhanced p63 activity, leading to the upregulation of PERP. Collectively, our study demonstrates that MCC cells can adopt a keratinocytic differentiation program in response to microenvironmental cues, underscoring the remarkable phenotypic plasticity of this malignancy and the importance of the tumor microenvironment for tumor characteristics.

Study EGAS00001008157

pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma exomes in study: Pro-immunogenic Impact of MEK inhibition combined with an anti-CD40 immunostimulatory antibody

Cancer types with lower mutational load and a non-permissive tumor microenvironment are intrinsically resistant to immune checkpoint blockade. While the combination of cytostatic drugs and immunostimulatory antibodies constitutes an attractive concept for overcoming this refractoriness, suppression of immune cell function by cytostatic drugs may limit therapeutic efficacy. Here we show that targeted inhibition of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) kinase (MEK) does not impair dendritic cell-mediated T-cell priming and activation. Accordingly, combining MEK inhibitors (MEKi) with agonist antibodies (Abs) targeting the immunostimulatory CD40 receptor resulted in potent synergistic anti-tumor efficacy. Detailed analysis of the mechanism of action of MEKi GDC-0623 by means of flow cytometric analysis of the tumor immune infiltrate and whole tumor transcriptomics showed that, in addition to its cytostatic impact on tumor cells, this drug exerts multiple pro-immunogenic effects, including the suppression of M2-type macrophages, myeloid derived suppressor cells and CD4+ T-regulatory cells. In addition, MEKi was found to induce tumor-cell intrinsic interferon signaling, which contributed to antigen presentation by tumor cells. Finally, the tumoridical impact of MEKi involves the activation of multiple pro-inflammatory pathways involved in immune cell effector function in the tumor microenvironment. Our data therefore indicate that the combination of MEK inhibition with agonist anti-CD40 Ab is a promising therapeutic concept, especially for the treatment of mutant Kras-driven tumors such as pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. The pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma exomes were generated in the context of the Heidelberg Center for Personalized Oncology project HIPO-K28E.

Study EGAS00001004196

Sequencing-based counting and size profiling of plasma Epstein-Barr virus DNA enhance population screening of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Circulating tumor-derived DNA testing for cancer screening has recently been demonstrated in a prospective study on identification of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) among 20,174 asymptomatic individuals. Plasma EBV DNA, a marker for NPC, was detected using real-time PCR. While plasma EBV DNA was persistently detectable in 97.1% of the NPCs identified, ∼5% of the general population had transiently detectable plasma EBV DNA. We hypothesized that EBV DNA in plasma of subjects with or without NPC may have different molecular characteristics. We performed target-capture sequencing of plasma EBV DNA and identified differences in the abundance and size profiles of EBV DNA molecules within plasma of NPC and non-NPC subjects. NPC patients had significantly higher amounts of plasma EBV DNA, which showed longer fragment lengths. Cutoff values were established from an exploratory dataset and tested in a validation sample set. Adopting an algorithm that required a sample to concurrently pass cutoffs for EBV DNA counting and size measurements, NPCs were detected at a positive predictive value (PPV) of 19.6%. This represented superior performance compared with the PPV of 11.0% in the prospective screening study, which required participants with an initially detectable plasma EBV DNA result to be retested within 4 weeks. The observed differences in the molecular nature of EBV DNA molecules in plasma of subjects with or without NPC were successfully translated into a sequencing-based test that had a high PPV for NPC screening and achievable through single time-point testing.

Study EGAS00001002707

11750 results for "cancer rna-seq"

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