Reproductive longevity is critical for fertility and impacts healthy ageing in women, yet insights into the underlying biological mechanisms and treatments to preserve it are limited. Here, we identify 290 genetic determinants of ovarian ageing, assessed using normal variation in age at natural menopause (ANM) in ~200,000 women of European ancestry. These common alleles influence clinical extremes of ANM; women in the top 1% of genetic susceptibility have an equivalent risk of premature ovarian insufficiency to those carrying monogenic FMR1 premutations. Identified loci implicate a broad range of DNA damage response (DDR) processes and include loss-of-function variants in key DDR genes. Integration with experimental models demonstrates that these DDR processes act across the life-course to shape the ovarian reserve and its rate of depletion. Furthermore, we demonstrate that experimental manipulation of DDR pathways highlighted by human genetics increase fertility and extend reproductive life in mice. Causal inference analyses using the identified genetic variants indicates that extending reproductive life in women improves bone health and reduces risk of type 2 diabetes, but increases risks of hormone-sensitive cancers. These findings provide insight into the mechanisms governing ovarian ageing, when they act across the life-course, and how they might be targeted by therapeutic approaches to extend fertility and prevent disease.
Glioma-derived cell-free DNA (cfDNA) is challenging to detect using liquid biopsy as levels in body fluids are low. We determined the glioma-derived DNA fractions in tumor biopsies, in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), plasma and urine samples, using deep sequencing of personalized capture panels. By sequencing cfDNA across thousands of mutations identified individually in each patient’s matched tumor we detected tumor-derived DNA in plasma (10/12) and urine samples (8/11). The median tumor fraction was 6.4x10-3 in CSF, 3.1x10-5 in plasma and 4.7x10-5 in urine. We identified a shift in the size distribution for mutant cfDNA fragments in these body fluids. Next, we analyzed cfDNA fragment sizes with paired-end shallow whole genome sequencing (WGS) in urine samples from 35 patients with gliomas, 8 individuals with non-malignant brain disorders, and 26 controls (n=69 individuals, 96 samples). cfDNA in urine of glioma patients was significantly more fragmented compared to urine from patients with non-malignant brain disorders (t-test, p=1.7x10-2) and compared to urine of controls (t-test, p=5.2x10-9). The proportion of DNA fragments <60 bp was higher in glioma patients urine and could be used for classification (AUC=0.93). Machine learning models integrating fragment lengths could identify urine samples from glioma patients (AUC=0.97 in cross-validation).
The overall goal of the CanSeq U01 project is to study the impact of whole-exome sequencing (WES) on the clinical care of cancer patients and oncology provider practices. The aims of Project 1 are to implement and establish the feasibility of germline and somatic WES in patients with advanced solid tumors (lung and colon); to develop a framework for interpreting and reporting for exome sequencing data; to determine the proportion of patients with "actionable items" compared to existing technologies; and to report on the percentage of patients in whom unique WES findings led to a clinical action. The aims of Project 2 are to implement a production-scale platform for WES from archival (FFPE) material; to identify biologically relevant somatic and germline alterations existing in tumor/normal DNA from individual patients; to produce an evidence-based list of clinically "actionable" genetic alterations; and to develop inferential models that predict the utility of tumor genomic data within the larger clinical context. The goals of Project 3 are to describe the impact of information derived through WES on cancer patients; to test the hypothesis that patients will want to receive information about all potentially informative somatic and germline variants; to study patients' understanding of disclosed genomic information; and to describe the experiences of oncology providers as they implement WES into cancer care delivery.
Data on transgenerational effects following nuclear accidents are important for understanding fully the consequences of parental exposure to ionizing radiation. Few studies to date have had adequate statistical power to detect effects of the magnitude expected based on animal data, and most have not been of low-dose, protracted exposures associated with nuclear accidents and their aftermath. Although, to date, scant use has been made of the new genomic technologies, in Chernobyl-exposed areas of Ukraine and Belarus, excess minisatellite mutations have been seen in children born after the accident. We propose a study of parent-child trios in which at least one parent was exposed to Chernobyl radiation as a clean-up worker (mean dose>=100 mGy) and/or evacuee from a contaminated area (mean >=50 mGy). The specific aims are to investigate the transgenerational and de novo mutation rates of the spectrum of genetic variants in trios, in particular looking at effects in children and mapping them to possible parental origin of the chromsoome. Together with long-term collaborators at the Research Center for Radiation Medicine (RCRM) in Kiev, epidemiologic data will be collected for up to 450 trios of parents with preconceptional doses and their unexposed offspring. We will use state-of-the-art genomic technologies to characterize the landscape of the genomes of the trios to determine whether parental radiation exposure is associated with genetic mutations transmitted to the offspring, by examining de novo mutation rates, minisatellite mutations, copy number alterations, and variations in telomere length. The analysis will be conducted in peripheral blood and/or buccal samples (when blood is not available) from complete father-mother-child trios. Doses to the gonads from the time of the accident to the time of conception will be reconstructed for all parents using existing records supplemented by interview data. Trio subjects will be selected from representative populations exposed to radiation from Chernobyl who are under active follow-up in the Clinico-Epidemiologic Registry at RCRM. To help identify specific effects of paternal and maternal radiation exposure, we will initially select sets of trio subjects in five categories: (1) exposed father, unexposed mother; (2) unexposed father, exposed mother; (3) both parents exposed; (4) both parents unexposed; and (5) a group of high dose "emergency workers" with acute radiation syndrome. All trio members will be invited to the RCRM outpatient clinic for collection of a 20 ml blood sample (or buccal cells for those who refuse phlebotomy). Both parents will be asked to complete a general questionnaire to obtain demographic and lifestyle data. Then one or both will complete detailed dosimetry questionnaires, based on forms used in previous collaborations with RCRM and administered by specially trained interviewers. Once 50 trios have been recruited (10 from each of the 5 exposure categories), we will conduct an interim evaluation of participation rates, sample collection and quality, and dose reconstruction in order to modify the protocol as needed. The analytical approach will be to correlate the extent, especially for de novo events of genetic alterations in the offspring with parental pre-conceptional radiation dose overall and by parental origin. The statistical power in relation to de novo mutations is very high, in excess of 90%, but somewhat lower for trends in minisatellite mutations. Study findings will contribute importantly to knowledge of the heritable effects of moderate- and low-dose radiation exposure in humans and to radiation risk projection. Eventually data from the Trio Study may be shared with the international community through dbGap.
The IPM BioMe Biobank, founded in September 2007, is an ongoing, broadly-consented electronic health record (EHR)-linked clinical care biobank that enrolls participants non-selectively from the Mount Sinai Medical Center patient population. BioMe currently comprises >42,000 participants from diverse ancestries, characterized by a broad spectrum of longitudinal biomedical traits. Participants are enrolled through an opt-in process and consent to be followed throughout their clinical care (past, present, and future) in real-time, allowing us to integrate their genomic information with their EHRs for discovery research and clinical care implementation. BioMe participants consent for recall, based on their genotype and/or phenotype, permitting in-depth follow-up and functional studies for selected participants at any time. Phenotypic and genomic data are stored in a secure database and made available to investigators, contingent on approval by the BioMe Governing Board. BioMe uses a "data-broker" system to protect confidentiality. Ancestral diversity - BioMe participants represent a broad racial, ethnic and socioeconomic diversity with a distinct and population-specific disease burden. Specifically, BioMe participants are of African (AA), Hispanic/Latino (HL), European (EA) and other/mixed ancestry. BioMe participants are predominantly of African (AA, 24%), Hispanic/Latino (HL, 35%), European (EA, 32%), and other ancestry (OA, 10%). Participants who self-identify as Hispanic/Latino further report to be of Puerto Rican (39%), Dominican (23%), Central/South American (17%), Mexican (5%) or other Hispanic (16%) ancestry. More than 40% of European ancestry participants are genetically determined to be of Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry. With this broad ancestral diversity, BioMe is uniquely positioned to examine the impact of demographic and evolutionary forces that have shaped common disease risk. Phenotypes available in BioMe - BioMe has a high-quality and validated set of fully implemented clinical phenotype data that has been culled by a multi-disciplinary team of experienced investigators, clinicians, information technologists, data-managers, and programmers who apply advanced medical informatics and data mining tools to extract and harmonize EHRs. BioMe, as a cohort, offers a great versatility for designing nested case-control sample-sets, particularly for studying longitudinal traits and co-morbidity in disease burden. Biomedical and clinical outcomes: The BioMe Biobank is linked to Mount Sinai's system-wide Epic EHR, which captures a full spectrum of biomedical phenotypes, including clinical outcomes, covariate and exposure data from past, present and future health care encounters. As such, the BioMe Biobank has a longitudinal design as participants consent to make all of their EHR data from past (dating back as far as 2003), present and future inpatient or outpatient encounters available for research, without restriction. The median number of outpatient encounters is 21 per participant, reflecting predominant enrollment of participants with common chronic conditions from primary care facilities. Environmental data: The clinical and EHR information is complemented by detailed demographic and lifestyle information, including ancestry, residence history, country of origin, personal and familial medical history, education, socio-economic status, physical activity, smoking, dietary habits, alcohol intake, and body weight history, which is collected in a systematic manner by interview-based questionnaire at time of enrollment. The IPM BioMe Biobank contributed ~10,600 DNA samples for whole genome sequencing to the TOPMed program. Samples were selected for the Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) and the Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) working groups. Using a Case-Definition-Algorithm (CDA), we identified ~4,100 individuals with CAD (~50% women) and ~3,000 individuals as controls (65% women). In addition, we identified ~800 individuals with COPD (62% women) and 1800 individuals as controls (72% women). Another 600 BioMe participants with Atrial Fibrillation, all of African ancestry, were included.
SNP 6.0 arrays of small cell lung cancer
