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• Tracing the origin of disseminated tumor cells in breast cancer using single-cell sequencing

  Background Single-cell micro-metastases of solid tumors often occur in the bone marrow. These disseminated tumor cells (DTCs) may resist therapy and lay dormant or progress to cause overt bone and visceral metastases. The molecular nature of DTCs remains elusive, as well as when and from where in the tumor they originate. Here, we apply single-cell sequencing to identify and trace the origin of DTCs in breast cancer. Results We sequence the genomes of 63 single cells isolated from six non-metastatic breast cancer patients. By comparing the cells DNA copy number aberration (CNA) landscapes with those of the primary tumors and lymph node metastasis, we establish that 53% of the single cells morphologically classified as tumor cells are DTCs disseminating from the observed tumor. The remaining cells represent either non-aberrant ‘normal’ cells or aberrant cells of unknown origin that have CNA landscapes discordant from the tumor. Further analyses suggest that the prevalence of aberrant cells of unknown origin is age-dependent, and that at least a subset is hematopoietic in origin. Evolutionary reconstruction analysis of bulk tumor and DTC genomes enables ordering of CNA events in molecular pseudo-time and traced the origin of the DTCs to either the main tumor clone, primary tumor subclones, or subclones in an axillary lymph node metastasis. Conclusions Single-cell sequencing of bone marrow epithelial-like cells, in parallel with intra-tumor genetic heterogeneity profiling from bulk DNA, is a powerful approach to identify and study DTCs, yielding insight into metastatic processes. A heterogeneous population of CNA-positive cells is present in the bone marrow of non-metastatic breast cancer patients, only part of which are derived from the observed tumor lineages.

  Study EGAS00001002102

• The Genetic Landscape of BCL2 Break Negative Follicular Lymphoma

  Background: 15% of high and 50% of low stage FL lack the t(14;18). Nevertheless, most of these cases express BCL2 by so far unknown mechanisms. Principals/Methodology: To find molecular mechanisms, triggering FL-pathogenesis in t(14;18)-negative FL, the exonic SNV-profiles of 33 FL with and 16 FL without t(14;18) were assessed by whole exome-sequencing and external SNV-data integration. The SNV-profile of the whole exome-sequenced FL was correlated with copy number, LOH and gene-expression data. Finally, the N-glycosylation status was assessed (LympTrack assay) in a separate validation cohort. Results: SNVs in FL with and without t(14;18) affected different genes, but accumulated in similar pathways, e.g. apoptosis, epigenetic processes and cell cycle/proliferation. Mutations in genes associated with immune-response were more prominently and those associated with NFkB and N-glycosylation selectively enriched in t(14;18)-negative FL. ~50% of mutated genes showed BCL2-asociation at high confidence in FL with and without t(14;18). Moreover, among the genes mutated in t(14;18)-negative FL 555 (~1/3) were affected by copy number alterations and/or copy-neutral LOH, 125 were differently expressed between FL with and without t(14;18) (p<0.01) and 62 were differentially expressed and affected by copy number alterations and/or copy-neutral LOH. N-glycosylation was strongly reduced in t(14;18)-negative FL as compared to results reported for historical FL cohorts. Conclusion: These results suggest a stronger crosstalk with the microenvironment that may compensate for the lack of N-glycosylation and a diverse portfolio of SNVs that may contribute to the upregulation of BCL2 and FL pathogenesis in t(14;18)-negative FL.

  Study EGAS00001002164

• Suppressors and activators of JAK-STAT signaling at diagnosis and relapse of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Down Syndrome

  Children with Down Syndrome (DS) are prone to development of high risk B-cell precursor ALL (DS-ALL) that differs genetically from most sporadic pediatric ALLs. Increased expression of CRLF2, the receptor to thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) characterizes about half of DS-ALLs and also a subgroup of sporadic “Philadelphia-like ALLs”. To understand the pathogenesis of relapsed DS-ALL we performed integrative genomic analysis of 25 matched diagnosis remission and relapse DS-ALLs. We found that the CRLF2 rearrangements are early events during DS-ALL evolution and generally stable between diagnoses and relapse. Secondary activating signaling events in JAK-STAT/RAS pathway were ubiquitous but highly redundant between diagnosis and relapse, suggesting that signaling is essential but that no specific mutations are “relapse driving”. We further found that activated JAK2 may be naturally suppressed in 25% of CRLF2 positive DS-ALL by loss-of-function aberrations in USP9X, a deubuitinase previously shown to stabilize the activated phosphorylated JAK2. Interrogation of large ALL genomic databases extended our findings up to 25% of CRLF2 positive, “Ph like” ALLs. Pharmacological or genetic inhibition of USP9X as well as treatment with low-dose Ruxolitinib enhanced the survival of pre-B ALL cells overexpressing mutated JAK2. Thus, somehow counterintuitive, we found that suppression of JAK-STAT “hyper-signaling” may be beneficial to leukemic B cell precursors. This and the reduction of JAK mutated clones at relapse suggest that the therapeutic effect of JAK specific inhibitors may be limited. Rather, combined signaling inhibitors or direct targeting of the TSLP receptor may be a useful therapeutic strategy for DS-ALL.

  Study EGAS00001002410

• Genomic landscape of oral cancers (Illumina RNA-Seq)

  Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a necessary but insufficient cause of a subset of oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCC) that is increasing markedly in frequency. To identify contributory, secondary genetic alterations in these cancers, we used comprehensive genomics methods to compare 149 HPV-positive and 335 HPV-negative OSCC tumor/normal pairs. Different behavioral risk factors underlying the two OSCC types were reflected in distinctive genomic mutational signatures. In HPV-positive OSCC, the signatures of APOBEC cytosine deaminase editing, associated with anti-viral immunity, were strongly linked to overall mutational burden. By contrast, in HPV-negative OSCC, T>C substitutions in the sequence context 5’-ATN-3’ correlated with tobacco exposure. Universal expression of HPV E6*1 and E7 oncogenes was a sine qua non of HPV-positive OSCC. Significant enrichment of somatic mutations was confirmed or newly identified in PIK3CA, KMT2D, FGFR3, FBXW7, DDX3X, PTEN, TRAF3, RB1, CYLD, RIPK4, ZNF750, EP300, CASZ1, TAF5, RBL1, IFNGR1 and NFKBIA. Of these, many affect host pathways already targeted by HPV oncoproteins, including the p53 and pRB pathways, or disrupt host defenses against viral infections, including interferon and nuclear factor-B signaling. Frequent copy number changes were associated with concordant changes in gene expression. Chr. 11q (including CCND1) and 14q (including DICER1 and AKT1) were recurrently lost in HPV-positive OSCC, in contrast to their gains in HPV-negative OSCC. High-ranking variant allele fractions implicated ZNF750, PIK3CA and EP300 mutations as candidate driver events in HPV-positive cancers. We conclude that virus-host interactions cooperatively shape the unique genetic features of these cancers, distinguishing them from their HPV-negative counterparts.

  Study EGAS00001003237

• The Immune Microenvironment, Genome–Wide Copy Number Aberrations and Survival in Mesothelioma

  IntroductionResults of recent clinical studies of immune checkpoint inhibitors in malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) have dampened initial enthusiasm. However, the immune environment and targets of these treatments such as program cell death protein 1 (PD-1) and its ligand PD-L1 have not been well characterised in MPM. Using a large cohort of patients, we investigated PD-L1 expression, immune infiltrates and genome-wide copy number status and correlated them to clinicopathological features.Patients and methodsTissue microarrays were constructed and stained with PD-L1(clone E1L3N, CST), CD4, CD8 and FOXP3 antibodies. PD-L1 positivity was defined as ≥5% membranous staining regardless of intensity and PD-L1+hi as ≥50%. Genomic DNA from a representative subset of 113 patients was used for genome-wide copy number analysis. The percent genome alteration (PGA) was computed as a proxy for genomic instability, and statistical analyses were used to relate copy number aberrations (CNA) to other variables.ResultsAmongst 329 patients evaluated, PD-L1+ was detected in 130/311 (41.7%), but PD-L1+hi was only seen in 30/311 (9.6%). PD-L1+ correlated with non–epithelioid histology and increased infiltration with CD4+, CD8+ and FOXP3+ lymphocytes. PD-L1+hi expression correlated with worse prognosis (HR = 2.37; 95%CI= 1.57-3.56; P < 0.001) on univariate analysis, but not in multivariate analysis. Higher PGA was associated with epithelioid histology and poorer survival (HR = 1.59; 95%CI= 1.01-2.5; P = 0.04), but not PD-L1 expression.ConclusionPD-L1 expression was associated with non-epithelioid MPM, poor clinical outcome and increased immunological infiltrates. Increased genomic instability did not correlate with PD-L1 expression, but was associated with poorer survival.

  Study EGAS00001002323

• Genomic landscape of oral cancers (Complete Genomics WGS)

  Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a necessary but insufficient cause of a subset of oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCC) that is increasing markedly in frequency. To identify contributory, secondary genetic alterations in these cancers, we used comprehensive genomics methods to compare 149 HPV-positive and 335 HPV-negative OSCC tumor/normal pairs. Different behavioral risk factors underlying the two OSCC types were reflected in distinctive genomic mutational signatures. In HPV-positive OSCC, the signatures of APOBEC cytosine deaminase editing, associated with anti-viral immunity, were strongly linked to overall mutational burden. By contrast, in HPV-negative OSCC, T>C substitutions in the sequence context 5’-ATN-3’ correlated with tobacco exposure. Universal expression of HPV E6*1 and E7 oncogenes was a sine qua non of HPV-positive OSCC. Significant enrichment of somatic mutations was confirmed or newly identified in PIK3CA, KMT2D, FGFR3, FBXW7, DDX3X, PTEN, TRAF3, RB1, CYLD, RIPK4, ZNF750, EP300, CASZ1, TAF5, RBL1, IFNGR1 and NFKBIA. Of these, many affect host pathways already targeted by HPV oncoproteins, including the p53 and pRB pathways, or disrupt host defenses against viral infections, including interferon and nuclear factor-B signaling. Frequent copy number changes were associated with concordant changes in gene expression. Chr. 11q (including CCND1) and 14q (including DICER1 and AKT1) were recurrently lost in HPV-positive OSCC, in contrast to their gains in HPV-negative OSCC. High-ranking variant allele fractions implicated ZNF750, PIK3CA and EP300 mutations as candidate driver events in HPV-positive cancers. We conclude that virus-host interactions cooperatively shape the unique genetic features of these cancers, distinguishing them from their HPV-negative counterparts.

  Study EGAS00001002393

• UK10K NEURO EDINBURGH

  In the UK10K project we propose a series of complementary genetic approaches to find new low frequency/rare variants contributing to disease phenotypes. These will be based on obtaining the genome wide sequence of 4000 samples from the TwinsUK and ALSPAC cohorts (at 6x sequence coverage), and the exome sequence (protein coding regions and related conserved sequence) of 6000 samples selected for extreme phenotypes. Our studies will focus primarily on cardiovascular-related quantitative traits, obesity and related metabolic traits, neurodevelopmental disorders and a limited number of extreme clinical phenotypes that will provide proof-of-concept for future familial trait sequencing. We will analyse directly quantitative traits in the cohorts and the selected traits in the extreme samples, and also use imputation down to 0.1% allele frequency to extend the analyses to further sample sets with genome wide genotype data. In each case we will investigate indels and larger structural variants as well as SNPs, and use statistical methods that combine rare variants in a locus or pathway as well as single-variant approaches. This sample set consists of subjects with schizophrenia recruited from psychiatric in-patient and out-patient facilities in Scotland. All diagnoses are based on standard research procedures and family histories are available. Patients have IQ>70 and the cohort includes the following groups: 100 cases with detailed clinical, cognitive and structural and functional neuroimaging phenotypes; 138 familial cases who are the probands of families where DNA has been collected from other affected members; 162 unrelated individuals. In most cases patients and their families may be re contacted to take part in further studies.For further information on this cohort please contact Andrew McIntosh (andrew.mcintosh@ed.ac.uk).

  Study EGAS00001000117

• Altered oligodendrocyte heterogeneity in Multiple sclerosis revealed by single nuclei RNA sequencing

  This study is currently hosted by the European Nucleotide Archive. To access the data contained within the Study please follow the link below: https://www.ebi.ac.uk/ena/browser/view/PRJEB39323 Oligodendrocyte (OL) pathology is increasingly implicated in neurodegenerative diseases, as they are involved in metabolic support of axons and functional cross-talk with other brain cells. Rodent OLs are heterogeneous, with developmental and biological differences, but the extent of heterogeneity in the normal human brain and its contribution to any changes to disease remains unknown. Here we performed single nuclei RNA-sequencing (snRNA-seq) from white matter (WM) areas of post mortem human brain both in control (Ctr) and multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. We identified several sub-clusters of oligodendroglia in the Ctr human WM, some similar to those in mouse, and defined new markers for these cell states. Strikingly, some of these sub-clusters were under-represented in MS tissue, while others were more prevalent than in controls. We found a lack of OL precursor cells (OPCs) and an OL subcluster in an intermediate stage of differentiation in MS lesions and in normal appearing white matter (NAWM), suggesting either depletion by the disease or by a regenerative response. The differences in mature OL sub-clusters indicate different functional states of OLs in MS tissue and, as this is similar in NAWM to lesions, that MS is a more diffuse brain disease than the focal demyelinating lesions suggest. We were also able to identify new putative markers of different MS lesion subtypes. Our findings of an altered heterogeneity of oligodendroglia in MS may have an important contribution to our understanding of disease progression and may alter therapeutic approaches to MS.

  Study EGAS00001003412

• Prenatal lead exposure is associated with decreased cord blood DNA methylation of the glycoprotein VI gene involved in platelet activation and thrombus formation

  Early-life lead exposure impairs neurodevelopment and later exposure affects the cardiovascular system. Lead has been associated with reduced global 5-methylcytosine DNA methylation, suggesting that lead toxicity acts through epigenetic mechanisms. The objective of this study is to clarify how early life lead exposure alters DNA methylation of specific genes, using an epigenomic approach. We measured lead concentrations in urine (gestational week, GW, 8) and erythrocytes (GW 14), using ICP-MS, for 127 pregnant mothers recruited in the MINIMat food and supplementation cohort in rural Bangladesh. Cord blood DNA methylation was analyzed with the Infinium HumanMethylation450K BeadChip and top sites were validated by methylation-sensitive high-resolution melt curve analysis. Maternal urinary lead concentrations (divided into quartiles) showed significant (after adjustment for FDR) inverse associations with methylation at nine CpGs. Three of these sites were in the 5’ end, including the promoter, of glycoprotein IV (GP6); cg18355337 (q=0.029, β=-0.30), cg25818583 (q=0.041, β=-0.18) and cg23796967 (q=0.047, β=-0.17). The methylation in another CpG site in GP6 was close to significant (cg05374025, q=0.057, β=-0.23). The erythrocyte lead concentrations (divided into quartiles) were also inversely associated with CpG methylation in GP6, although this was not statistically significant after FDR-adjustments. Eight CpG sites in GP6 constituted a differentially methylated region in relation to urinary lead (p=0.005, q=0.48) and erythrocyte lead (p=0.007, q=0.46). In conclusion, we found that moderate prenatal lead exposure appear to epigenetically affect GP6, a key component of platelet aggregation and thrombus formation, suggesting a novel link between early lead exposure and cardiovascular disease later in life.

  Study EGAS00001001575

• Analysis of RAD51C promoter methylation using targeted bisulfite sequencing (amplicon sequencing) in ovarian cancer pre-clinical models and patient samples.

  In high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSC), deleterious mutations in the DNA repair gene RAD51C are established drivers of defective homologous recombination and are emerging biomarkers of PARP inhibitor (PARPi) sensitivity. RAD51C promoter methylation (meRAD51C) is detected at similar frequencies to mutations, yet its effects on PARPi responses remain unresolved. In this study, three HGSC patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models with methylation at most or all examined CpG sites in the RAD51C promoter show responses to PARPi. Both complete and heterogeneous methylation patterns were associated with RAD51C gene silencing and homologous recombination deficiency (HRD). PDX models lost meRAD51C following treatment with PARPi rucaparib or niraparib, where a single unmethylated copy of RAD51C was sufficient to drive PARPi resistance. Genomic copy number profiling of one of the PDX models using SNP arrays revealed that this resistance was acquired independently in two genetically distinct lineages. In a cohort of 11 patients with RAD51C-methylated HGSC, various patterns of meRAD51C were associated with genomic 'scarring', indicative of HRD history, but exhibited no clear correlations with clinical outcome. Differences in methylation stability under treatment pressure were also observed between patients, where one HGSC was found to maintain meRAD51C after 6 lines of therapy (4 platinum-based), whilst another HGSC sample was found to have heterozygous meRAD51C and elevated RAD51C gene expression (relative to homozygous meRAD51C controls) after only neo-adjuvant chemotherapy. As meRAD51C loss in a single gene copy was sufficient to cause PARPi resistance in PDX, methylation zygosity should be carefully assessed in previously treated patients when considering PARPi therapy.

  Study EGAS00001005395

• Genomic landscape of oral cancers (Illumina WGS)

  Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a necessary but insufficient cause of a subset of oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCC) that is increasing markedly in frequency. To identify contributory, secondary genetic alterations in these cancers, we used comprehensive genomics methods to compare 149 HPV-positive and 335 HPV-negative OSCC tumor/normal pairs. Different behavioral risk factors underlying the two OSCC types were reflected in distinctive genomic mutational signatures. In HPV-positive OSCC, the signatures of APOBEC cytosine deaminase editing, associated with anti-viral immunity, were strongly linked to overall mutational burden. By contrast, in HPV-negative OSCC, T>C substitutions in the sequence context 5’-ATN-3’ correlated with tobacco exposure. Universal expression of HPV E6*1 and E7 oncogenes was a sine qua non of HPV-positive OSCC. Significant enrichment of somatic mutations was confirmed or newly identified in PIK3CA, KMT2D, FGFR3, FBXW7, DDX3X, PTEN, TRAF3, RB1, CYLD, RIPK4, ZNF750, EP300, CASZ1, TAF5, RBL1, IFNGR1 and NFKBIA. Of these, many affect host pathways already targeted by HPV oncoproteins, including the p53 and pRB pathways, or disrupt host defenses against viral infections, including interferon and nuclear factor-B signaling. Frequent copy number changes were associated with concordant changes in gene expression. Chr. 11q (including CCND1) and 14q (including DICER1 and AKT1) were recurrently lost in HPV-positive OSCC, in contrast to their gains in HPV-negative OSCC. High-ranking variant allele fractions implicated ZNF750, PIK3CA and EP300 mutations as candidate driver events in HPV-positive cancers. We conclude that virus-host interactions cooperatively shape the unique genetic features of these cancers, distinguishing them from their HPV-negative counterparts.

  Study EGAS00001003228

• Comprehensive characterization of pre- and post-treatment samples of breast cancer reveal potential mechanisms of chemotherapy resistance

  When locally advanced breast cancer is treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy, the recurrence risk is significantly higher if no complete pathologic response is achieved. Identification of the underlying resistance mechanisms is essential to select treatments with maximal efficacy and minimal toxicity. Here we employed gene expression profiles derived from 317 HER2-negative treatment-naïve breast cancer biopsies of patients who underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy, deep whole exome and RNA-sequencing profiles of 22 matched pre- and post-treatment tumors, and treatment outcome data to identify biomarkers of response and resistance mechanisms. Molecular profiling of treatment-naïve breast cancer samples revealed that expression levels of proliferation, immune response and extracellular matrix (ECM) organization combined predict response to chemotherapy. Triple negative patients with high proliferation, high immune response and low ECM expression had a significantly better treatment response and survival benefit (HR 0.29, 95% CI 0.10-0.85; p=0.02), while in ER+ patients the opposite was seen (HR 4.73, 95% CI 1.51-14.8; 0=0.008). The characterization of paired pre-and post-treatment samples revealed that aberrations of known cancer genes were either only present in the pre-treatment sample (CDKN1B) or in the post-treatment sample(TP53, APC, CTNNB1). Proliferation-associated genes were frequently down-regulated in post-treatment ER+ tumors, but not in triple negative tumors. Genes involved in ECM were upregulated in the majority of post-chemotherapy samples. Genomic and transcriptomic differences between pre- and post-chemotherapy samples are common and may reveal potential mechanisms of therapy resistance. Our results show a wide range of distinct, but related mechanisms, with a prominent role for proliferation- and ECM-related genes.

  Study EGAS00001005876

• Single_cell_measurements_to_characterise_B_cell_repopulation_in_SLE_after_rituximab_therapy__a_pilot_study

  Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a systemic autoimmune disease characterised by autoantibodies against DNA and nuclear proteins. Kidney involvement (lupus nephritis) is one of the most serious manifestations and is the leading determinant of long-term prognosis. Therapies targeting B cells (e.g. rituximab) are used in the treatment of severe lupus, including lupus nephritis. Rituximab is a monoclonal antibody that targets the CD20 surface protein on the surface of B cells. Following rituximab treatment, there is near complete depletion of B cells in peripheral blood. Peripheral blood B cells slowly return over a period of months. The speed of repopulation varies but typically B cells have returned to baseline levels between 9 and 12 months post rituximab therapy. Return of B cells may be associated with increased disease activity, but this is not always the case. For example, some patients remain in clinical remission for several years following one cycle of rituximab, despite B cell repopulation, whilst others relapse as soon as the B cell number reaches the normal range. The reasons for the different response remain unclear. The B cell subpopulations that return following B cell depleting therapy have been previously studied using flow cytometry but have never been characterised using single cell -omic technologies and thus no data on their molecular signatures are available. Previous studies have shown that naïve B cells were the predominant repopulating B-cells, indicating de novo production of B cells. Obtaining an integrated understanding of the molecular programs of these cells at the single cell level will enhance our ability to predict disease outcome, to identify patients with poorer B-cell drug responses, understand disease heterogeneity and design more effective B-cell targeted therapies approach.

  Study EGAS00001006798

• cfDNA dataset from the urine supernatant of ovarian cancer patients and healthy controls

  Background Ovarian cancer is the deadliest gynecological malignancy worldwide, due to frequent diagnosis at advanced stage. Simple and non-invasive methods for earlier and accurate detection are urgently needed. Here, the presence of tumor-derived DNA in home-collected urine, cervicovaginal self-samples and clinician-taken cervical scrapes of ovarian cancer patients was explored by DNA methylation and copy number analysis. Methods A total of 428 samples (urine, cervicovaginal self-samples, and clinician-taken cervical scrapes) of 110 healthy controls and 54 patients with benign (n=25) or malignant (n=29) ovarian masses were analyzed. Different urine fractions were examined (full void urine, urine supernatant, and urine sediment). All samples were tested for 12 methylation markers by quantitative methylation-specific PCR. Shallow whole-genome sequencing was performed to detect copy number aberrations and verify the presence of tumor-derived DNA. Results Full void urine was most discriminatory between healthy controls and ovarian cancer patients (C2CD4D, p=0.008; CDO1, p=0.022; MAL, p=0.008), followed by cervical scrapes (C2CD4D, p=0.001; CDO1, p=0.004). A significant difference between benign and malignant ovarian masses was only observed for GHSR in the urine sediment (p=0.024). Methylation levels in cervicovaginal self-samples did not discriminate between healthy controls, benign and malignant ovarian masses. Copy number changes were identified in 17% of urine supernatant samples and smaller fragment sizes were seen in urine supernatant samples with a high tumor fraction. Conclusions This study demonstrates the presence of ovarian cancer-derived DNA in home-collected urine. Additional studies are warranted to further explore the clinical applicability of this approach.

  Study EGAS00001007238

• Dynamics of circulating tumor DNA in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients who undergo allogeneic transplantation

  Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) is the only curative option for many patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). With the increasing use of non-myeloablative conditioning regimens, it is widely assumed that the cytotoxic conditioning itself does not eradicate all leukemia cells. Instead, the donor-derived immune cells are believed to eliminate residual leukemia cells over time. This so-called graft-versus-leukemia (GvL) is postulated to be the primary mechanism by which allo-HCT achieves sustained remissions in patients with AML. However, the precise quantification of GvL effects and its contribution to leukemia eradication has not yet been demonstrated by sequential, highly sensitive measurements of residual disease at various time points following allo-HCT. In the current study, we employed a novel, highly sensitive and specific plasma-based assay to track mutations in the leukemia cells of 14 patients before and after allo-HCT. If the primary therapeutic benefit of allo-HCT is truly mediated through a GvL effect, we hypothesized that leukemia cells would persist following cytotoxic conditioning and would often be reduced after post-transplant immunosuppression was discontinued. In the majority of patients (11 of 14, 79%), the conditioning used for allo-HCT did not eradicate the leukemia cells. In seven of these 11 patients, the leukemia cells persisted until immunosuppression was discontinued, at which time the persistent leukemia cells were reduced or eradicated. These results demonstrate the feasibility of using circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) as a dynamic marker of GvL as well as minimal residual disease for patients with AML undergoing alloHCT, and have substantial implications for their management.

  Study EGAS00001007969

• A study of the genetic basis of evation by Acute Myeloid Leukaemia of Graft vs Leukaemia effects after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation

  Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is an aggressive and molecularly diverse disease with a poor overall survival of 20-25%. With an annual incidence of 2.9 per 100,000, AML is currently the commonest myeloid malignancy in Europe, yet the two main therapeutic options for this disease, anthracyclines and purine analogues, have remained unchanged for over 20 years. Currently patients are stratified at diagnosis according to a series of clinicopathological parameters (e.g. age, white cell count and presence/absence of previous clonal haematological disease) and molecular markers (e.g. chromosomal translocations/deletions, aneuploidy and mutations in genes such as FLT3 and NPM1). Patients with adverse prognostic features, whose prognosis is particularly poor (e.g. <15% long-term survival) are offered treatment with allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (allo-BMT) if a sibling or unrelated donor is available. This can significantly improve survival (e.g. up to 40% long-term survival in some contexts), albeit at the expense of significant toxicity and transplant-related mortality (TRM). Allo-BMT is thought to work in part by allowing the delivery of large doses of chemotherapy followed by haemopoietic "rescue" with donor haemopoietic stem cells (haemopoietic failure would otherwise ensue). However, potentially the most potent effect of allo-BMT is the cytotoxic effect of donor lymphocytes against AML blasts, a phenomenon known as graft-vs-leukaemia (GVL) effect. Increasingly, transplants using reduced chemotherapy intensity (mini-allografts) are being used that partially circumvent the toxicity from chemotherapy and rely on GVL to effect cure. Nevertheless, AML relapse after allo-BMT still occurs at a significant rate of up to 80% depending on the type of transplant. There is accumulating evidence that genetic events in residual leukaemic cells enable them to evade immunodetection and therefore survive the GVL effect and expand to cause relapse. The most striking example of this is the loss of HLA antigens after transplants in which donor and recipient are not fully HLA-matched. In these cases, the leukaemia "deletes" the genomic region containing the disparate HLA antigen which was preferentially targeted as "foreign" by the GVL effect. However, the genetic basis of immune evasion in the majority of transplants, which are fully HLA matched, is not known. One possibility is that loss of genes coding for antigens outside the HLA locus but which are also targets of GVL may operate, alternatively genetic events that affect processes downstream of immunological cytotoxicity may be responsible. The identification of genetic events that mediate immune evasion would not only facilitate the understanding of this process but can help plan therapeutic interventions that improve the outcomes of allogeneic transplantation for AML and other disorders. We intend to study this by conducting exome sequencing on 6 cases of AMLs from patients that attend my clinic at Addenbrooke's hospital and have relapsed after allogeneic transplantation. Samples from AML diagnosis, remission/normal and AML relapse (total n=18) will be studied to identify somatic mutations in the primary AML and those acquired by the relapsed clone. The 18 samples will also be studied by array CGH to detect regions of genomic amplification or deletion.

  Dataset EGAD00001000404

• The Federated EGA network

  In the last 10 years, most human omics data has been generated in the context of research consortia while recently there has been an emergence of large cohorts of human data generated by healthcare initiatives. Many countries in Europe now have nascent personalised medicine programmes. Thus, human genomics is shifting from being predominantly research-driven to being funded through healthcare systems. Genetic data generated in a healthcare context is subject to more stringent information governance than research data and nonetheless all data must adhere to national data protections laws. In this context, EGA identified the need for the development of a federated network to enable secure sharing of data whilst enabling genetic data to remain within the jurisdiction in which it was generated. The Federated EGA is designed to support national data management requirements for genomic and clinical data collected from citizens as part of healthcare or biomedical research projects. It includes a secure authorised access mechanism to support research use of these data across Europe and worldwide. We have engaged with over 14 ELIXIR countries to develop the federation model. The EGA federated configuration is composed of Central EGA, Federated EGA nodes and Community EGA nodes: Central EGA offers international submissions and helpdesk support, currently EGA co-managed by EMBL-EBI and CRG, Federated EGA nodes offer EGA services to researchers within their national jurisdiction, Community EGA nodes are individual institutions or initiatives with human genetic data intended to be shared with the research community. Key services available in the Federated EGA structure are: Central EGA Federated EGA node Community EGA nodes Data submission Offers international submissions service Offers submission service in a particular jurisdiction Does not offer an external submissions service Helpdesk support Provides external international helpdesk Provides helpdesk support for submitters in its jurisdiction and for approved users of data managed at its facilities Provides helpdesk support only for approved users of data managed at its facilities Data distribution Manages worldwide distribution for data hosted at Central EGA Manages worldwide distribution for data hosted at Federated EGA node Distribution for data hosted at Community EGA node EMBL-EBI and CRG have prepared a series of documents describing the overall governance and coordination framework. These describe the Federated EGA structure, the rights and responsibilities of the different parties and governing committees, and node operation guidelines. The federation governance proposal is under review by the first countries invited to join as Federated nodes, with further interested countries likely to join in the coming years. The Central EGA team has been working closely with many ELIXIR partners, including ELIXIR Finland, Luxembourg, Germany, Norway, Spain and Sweden.

  Blog the-federated-ega-network

• HCA_Adrenal_Foetal_WSSS_RNA_SB

  The Human Cell Atlas initiative is an ambitious global research effort which aims to describe every cell in the human body across all developmental stages to generate a reference map to accelerate progress in science and medicine particularly relating to human development and disease. The initiative is led by investigators based at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and funding support from the Wellcome and NIH. This specific project will assess human development. We aim to interrogate the cellular composition and molecular regulators underpinning development and maturation through single cell RNA-sequencing/spatial transcriptomics and computational algorithms to predict cellular developmental trajectories and cell-cell interactions. We will subsequent validate these findings in situ using allied imaging technologies e.g. immunohistochemistry and RNAscope and in vitro culture of human intestinal organoids (HIOs). This data is part of a pre-publication release. For information on the proper use of pre-publication data shared by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (including details of any publication moratoria), please see http://www.sanger.ac.uk/datasharing/

  Study EGAS00001004089

• Genetic_variation_in_Kuusamo

  The aim of this study is to characterize as completely as possible the genetic variation and structure of Kuusamo and surrounding regions. We will perform low coverage, whole genome sequencing in a relatively limited number (approximately 200) of individuals from the FINRISK study both of whose parents are born in Kuusamo, Posio or Taivalkoski. Sequencing will be performed at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (WTSI). We have previously shown using simulations and genome wide SNP data that the genetic characteristics agree with known genealogical data, and that approximately 200 individuals suffice to capture the majority of the genetic variation in this population.We have also developed methods for long-range haplotyping and long-range imputation, which are more accurate than traditional methods. This will allow us to identify a majority of the founder haplotypes in this population. The information from the haplotypes identified in this study can be used in other studies to impute from genome-wide SNP data the full genome sequence of samples ascertained for specific phenotypes.

  Study EGAS00001000020

• Comparison of Custom Capture for Targeted Next Generation DNA Sequencing

  Targeted, capture-based DNA sequencing is an economical way to sequence a customized region of the genome. Several targeted sequencing kits are available, but the efficacies of these kits have not been compared. We appraised four targeted DNA technologies for next generation sequencing, considering on-target sequencing, uniformity, and single nucleotide variation and copy number variation discovery. The technologies which utilized sonication to fragment genomic material showed impressive uniformity of capture. The other two had shorter preparation times, but sacrificed uniformity. One of those technologies, which needs transposase to fragment genomic material, has a weakness that requires all samples be pooled and the final one, which uses restriction enzyme digestion, is limited depending on restriction enzymes digest sites. Naturally, all technologies showed some concordance for calling SNVs, the kits that used restriction enzymes or transposase missed several SNVs, due, in large part, to lack of coverage. All technologies showed high integrity for copy number variant calling when compared to SNP arrays. This study aids laboratories in their decision of the proper technology to use for their intended applications.

  Study phs000811

• Genomic Analysis of Fibrolamellar Hepatocellular Carcinoma

  Fibrolamellar hepatocellular carcinoma (FL-HCC) is a very rare and distinct subtype of hepatocellular carcinoma that occurs in the previously healthy livers of adolescents and young adults. The low incidence rate has kept FL-HCC an understudied cancer, thus the list of FL-HCC markers is limited and the genetic alterations driving its growth have remained unknown. In order to gain a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying FL-HCC initiation and progression, we performed an in-depth genomic analyses of one tumor followed by immunohistochemistry validation on seven other tumors. We showed the expression of neuroendocrine markers in FL-HCC. In addition, DNA/RNA sequencing revealed that common cancer pathways are not visibly altered in FL-HCC but identified two novel structural variants, both resulting in fusion transcripts. Through in vitro studies, we demonstrated the oncogenic properties of these fusion transcripts. These experiments further highlight the tumorigenic role of gene fusions in the etiology of pediatric solid tumors and identify both candidate biomarkers and possible therapeutic targets for this lethal pediatric disease.

  Study phs000828

• Baylor College of Medicine Advancing Sequencing in Childhood Cancer Care (BASIC3) Clinical Exome Sequencing Study - Clinical Sequencing Exploratory Research Consortium

  The BASIC3 (Baylor College of Medicine Advancing Sequencing in Childhood Cancer Care) study is a National Genome Human Research Institute (NHGRI) and National Cancer Institute-funded Clinical Sequencing Exploratory Research (CSER) consortium project that focuses on prospective implementation of clinical whole exome sequencing in the pediatric oncology clinic. The primary study objective are to integrate information from CLIA-certified germline and tumor exome sequencing into the care of newly diagnosed solid tumor patients at Texas Children's Cancer Center, and to perform parallel evaluation of the impact of tumor and germline exomes on families and physicians. Blood and frozen tumor (if available) samples are collected from children undergoing surgery or biopsy of newly diagnosed solid tumors and subjected to exome sequencing in a CLIA-certified laboratory. Germline and tumor (if applicable) exome sequencing reports are generated and submitted into the electronic health record and returned to each patient/family by their primary oncologist. If specific (optional) consent is obtained, research sequencing studies (including transcriptome sequencing) are performed in addition to the clinical exome sequencing.

  Study phs001026

• The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) Stroke Genetics Network (SiGN)

  The NINDS Stroke Genetics Network (SiGN) is a large international collaboration designed to detect genetic variants that predispose to subtypes of ischemic stroke. The study implements a genome wide association study (GWAS) methodology with all stroke cases undergoing phenotypic and stroke-subtype classification using the same web-based Causative Classification of Stroke (CCS) system, with data entered by trained and certified adjudicators at participating Research Centers (GRC's). SiGN includes ischemic stroke cases from 24 GRC's, 13 from the US and 11 from Europe. Each GRC has access to well-characterized ischemic stroke cases in which extensive phenotype data and high-quality DNA was available. Genome-wide data was available for many cases and for those without, new genome-wide genotyping, including exome chip genotyping of rare variants, was done through the Center for Inherited Diseases Research (CIDR). To maximize power for subtype analyses, genotyping resources were allocated almost exclusively to cases. With few exceptions, controls were drawn from studies with publicly available genome-wide data.

  Study phs000615

• 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

• 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

• Neoadjuvant Trastuzumab Response in Breast Cancer

  HER2 (ERBB2) gene amplification and overexpression are present in 15-30% of invasive breast cancers. While HER2-targeted agents such as trastuzumab are effective treatments, therapeutic resistance remains a concern in HER2-positive breast cancer with 40-50% of patients having residual disease after neoadjuvant treatment with chemotherapy and trastuzumab. To investigate features that may make it possible to predict at diagnosis which cancers will be responsive to trastuzumab and chemotherapy, 48 tumor/normal DNA pairs extracted from pretreatment tumor biopsies and blood of HER2-positive breast cancer cases treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy and trastuzumab were sequenced. Whole genome and exome sequence from tumor (average depth 49x and 71x) and normal (average depth 33x and 69x) DNA are included here as well as RNAseq data for 42 of the tumors. The study cohort was equally divided between patients who experienced pathological complete response and those with residual disease. Samples were obtained from the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group Z1041 trial (NCT00513292) and a local single-institution study (NCT00353483).

  Study phs001291

• 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 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

• Multi-Omic Profiling of Glioma Patient Tumors and Patient-Derived Model Systems

  We have created a resource of transcriptomic (RNAseq), genomic (whole-exome seq), and lipidomic (untargeted shotgun) profiling data from over 175 molecularly diverse glioma tumors and derivative models in orthotopic mouse xenografts and gliomasphere cultures from over 110 unique patient tumor lines. Provided in this dataset are matched bulk RNA and whole-exome paired-end sequencing data from resected gliomas and derived model systems performed on Illumina HiSeq and NovaSeq sequencing instruments. This comprehensive dataset powers multiple studies aiming to derive molecular signatures of intertumoral heterogeneity and perturbation responses in glioma. Through integrative multi-omic analyses in Minami, et al., 2023, PMID: 37236196, we identified that CDKN2A deletion remodels the GBM lipidome and consequently primes CDKN2A-deleted tumors for ferroptosis. Lipidomics data related to this study are publicly available here. In another study, we used a combination of molecular profiling and functional profiling of apoptotic potential to stratify patients into groups with differential vulnerability to the current standard-of-care in gliomas, and in combination with drugs targeting intrinsic apoptosis, largely informed but not limited to TP53 mutation status.

  Study phs003286

• WES in HCCOs with varying Doxorubicin resistance

  We aimed to identify somatic mutations that could explain the resistance to Doxorubicin. Therefor, we purified Exomes from liver biopsies and HCC organoids using Agilent SureSelectXT (clinical research exome, HS2 V8, or Human all Exon V6 Cosmic) and performed WES. Matched non-tumoral liver biopsies served as the control for germline mutations. 12 of these samples were previously reported. Sequence reads were aligned to the reference human genome GRCh38 using Burrows-Wheeler Aligner (BWA, v0.7.17). Duplicate removal, base quality adjustment, mutation calling (Mutect2, intervals: SureSelectXT_HS_V8_S33266340, germline-recourse: gnomad.exomes.r2.1.1.sites.liftover_grch38, Panel-of-Normal: 1000g_pon.hg38), filtering of Mutect calls, and functional annotation (Funcotator, funcotator_dataSources.v1.7.20200521g) were performed using the Genome Analysis Toolkit (GATK, v4.4) according to the Broad Institute best practices in Somatic short variant discovery workflows. Mutations with a functional annotation of Deletion, Insertion, Non-stop, Splice-Site, Start-Codon and Missense mutations were kept. A list of 43 commonly mutated genes in HCC was analyzed in the HCC organoids [TCGA, Comprehensive and Integrative Genomic Characterization of Hepatocellular Carcinoma. Cell, 2017. 169(7): p. 1327-1341.e23].

  Study EGAS50000000043

• IL-27 promotes tumour control by enhancing cytotoxic T cell function

  Cytotoxic CD8+ T lymphocytes (CTL) are essential for anti-tumour immunity but are frequently dysfunctional in established tumours. Here, we show that expression of a CTL signature is strongly associated with IL-27 expression in diverse human and murine tumours. In mice, IL-27 acts directly on tumour-specific CTL to promote their persistence and effector function in the tumor microenvironment. Moreover, treatment with inducible IL-27 overexpression or a half-life-extended IL-27 protein in vivo is well tolerated, induces regression of large established tumours, drives an enhanced cytotoxic program in anti-tumour CTL, and synergizes with PD-L1 blockade. In cancer patients treated with anti-PD-1 or anti-PD-L1 therapy, high expression of IL-27 is associated with improved clinical response. Finally, IL-27 increases cytotoxicity and limits terminal differentiation of human CD8+ T cells during chronic antigen exposure. Our data demonstrate that endogenous IL-27 is essential for anti-tumour immunity and that IL-27 receptor agonism can safely improve anti-tumor T cell responses alone or in combination with PD-L1 blockade.

  Study EGAS50000000694

• Assessment of candidate high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma predisposition genes through integrated germline and tumour sequencing

  High-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC) has a significant hereditary component, only half of which is explained. Previously, we performed germline exome sequencing on BRCA1 and BRCA2-negative HGSOC patients, revealing three proposed and 43 novel candidate genes enriched with rare loss-of-function variants. For validation, we undertook case-control analyses using genomic data from disease-free controls. This confirms enrichment for nearly all previously identified genes. Additionally, one-hundred-and-eleven HGSOC tumours from variant carriers were sequenced alongside other complementary studies, seeking evidence of biallelic inactivation as supportive evidence. PALB2 and ATM validate as HGSOC predisposition genes, with 6/8 germline carrier tumours exhibiting biallelic inactivation accompanied by characteristic mutational signatures. Among candidate genes, only LLGL2 consistently shows biallelic inactivation and protein expression loss, supporting it as a novel HGSOC susceptibility gene. The remaining candidate genes fail to validate. Integrating case-control analyses with tumour sequencing is thus crucial for accurate gene discovery in familial cancer studies.

  Study EGAS50000000770

• Transcriptome profiling of patient derived neural stem cells highlights the importance of CTNND2 and WNT signaling in early neuralization

  Loss of CTNND2/δ-catenin function is implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders, including Cri-du-chat syndrome, autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. CTNND2, the encoded protein, is crucial for the cadherin-catenin cell adhesion complex in the brain. However, the specific impact on neurodevelopment remains unclear. To investigate, we used neuroepithelial stem cells (NESCs) derived from patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) with loss of CTNND2. In monolayer cultures, we observed abnormal neural rosette formation and failure to establish stable neural stem cells. 3D organoid cultures confirmed delayed neurogenesis and slower growth in patient-derived iPSC lines. We have built a transcriptomic catalog and observed a dysregulation of the WNT signaling pathway linked to our observed cellular phenotypes. To validate we excluded the WNT activator CHIR99021 from the media, which partially rescued the transcriptomic and morphological phenotype of the patient neural induction. This study enhances our understanding of how CTNND2 loss affects early neurogenesis and neuronal maturation in patient specific cells.

  Study EGAS50000000323

• Copy number variations and fragmentation features in cell-free DNA predict response in advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients under anti-PD-(L)1 therapy

  Anti-PD-(L)1 therapy is routinely used in metastatic NSCLC. However, response rates vary and biomarkers predicting treatment efficacy are lacking. Liquid biopsies allow monitoring of residual disease during therapy. Residual circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) after therapy represents a predictive marker for adverse outcome. Here, we assessed copy number variations (CNVs) in serial plasma samples of NSCLC patients receiving PD-(L)1 blockade. We profiled CNV and fragmentation features in 118 plasma samples of advanced NSCLC patients by low-coverage whole genome sequencing taken at baseline, after four therapy cycles and at disease progression. CNVs and fragment features (i.e., fragment length, end motifs, position) were significantly altered in patients compared to healthy donors. Furthermore, fragment length changes at baseline and residual CNVs after four therapy cycles correlated with short progression-free survival. Our results highlight the suitability of plasma-based CNV and fragment analysis for disease monitoring and as a predictive marker for response duration in NSCLC patients under anti-PD-(L)1 therapy.

  Study EGAS50000000441

• Relation between transcriptome, karyotype and age in cases of sex chromosome aneuploidies.

  Why women live longer than men is still an open question in human biology. Sex chromosomes have been proposed to play a role in the observed sex gap in longevity, and the Y male chromosome has been suspected of having a potential toxic genomic impact on male longevity. It has been hypothesized that transposable element (TE) repression declines with age, potentially leading to detrimental effects such as somatic mutations and disrupted gene expression, which may accelerate the aging process. Given that the Y chromosome is rich in repeats, age-related increases in TE expression could be more pronounced in males, likely contributing to their reduced longevity compared to females. In this work, we first studied whether TE expression is associated with the number of sex chromosomes in humans. We analyzed blood transcriptomic data obtained from individuals of different karyotype compositions: 46,XX females (normal female karyotype), 46,XY males (normal male karyotype), as well as males with abnormal karyotypes, such as 47,XXY, and 47,XYY.

  Study EGAS50000001009

• dbGaP Collection: NIH Autism -omics Studies

  Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are early onset neurodevelopmental syndromes characterized by impairments in reciprocal social interaction and communication, accompanied by restricted and repetitive behaviors. ASDs afflict ~1% of the human population, and represent a major public health burden. Evidence for the etiology of ASD has consistently pointed to a strong genetic component, though the genetic architecture is indisputably complex. This dbGaP Collection consists of studies that include GWAS, sequencing (targeted, exome, whole genome), transcriptomics, etc, across many different cohorts. Many of the datasets have been curated and harmonized with NDAR prior to submission to dbGaP. Researchers who request and are approved to access this collection will be granted access to all related substudies in dbGaP as well as all NDAR data. Individual level genomics data will only be available for download through dbGaP along with minimal phenotype and pedigree information. Detailed phenotype and available imaging data related to these same research subjects are available for query and download within NDAR. The NDAR GUID will allow individual genomic data to be associated with all NDAR data collected for those subjects.

  Study phs000764

• Ancient tree-topologies and gene-flow processes among human lineages in Africa

  The deep history of human evolution in Africa remain intensely debated. We produced 73 novel high-quality whole genomes from 14 Central and Southern African populations with diverse cultural practices. With extensive simulations and machine-learning Approximate Bayesian Computation inferences, we reconstruct jointly their complex history of divergences and migrations. We find vast genome-wide diversity within and among populations, often uncorrelated with geography and cultural practices. This demonstrates the necessity to explicitly consider local genomic patterns, without merging samples indiscriminately into larger a priori categories, to reconstruct human evolutionary histories. We find that tree-like evolutions with long periods of drift between short periods of unidirectional gene-flow best explain the data, and that the lineage ancestral to Khoe-San populations diverged around 300,000 years ago from a lineage ancestral to rainforest hunter-gatherers and neighboring agriculturalists. We also find that short periods of ancient and recent gene-flow coincide with epochs of major ecological and cultural changes in Sub-Saharan Africa.

  Study EGAS50000001072

• CNA differences between RNA-based subtypes of PDAC

  Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas (PDAC) have a dismal prognosis with a 5-year survival of <5%. Chemoresistance and recurrences, seen in approximately 70% of PDAC patients, may partly be explained by intratumor heterogeneity (ITH) through which tumors may develop ‘escape routes’. In the Pancreas Multibiopsy (PM)-project we have obtained multiple fragments from pancreatic and other peri-ampullary carcinomas in order to reveal potential ITH and identify genetic aberrations that predict outcome after surgery and response to chemotherapy. CNA-profiles were used to complement the characterization of liabilities in PDAC that we identified previously using RNAseq in the form of epithelial, secretory, compound pancreatic, and mesenchymal subgroups that showed survival outcomes. Comparison of CNA-profiles between these transcriptomics-based subgroups (with 8, 3, 6, and 6 tumors respectively per group) showed differences, ranging from ‘quiet’(i.e. hardly any CNA) to ‘wild’(i.e. lots of CNA), but these were not statistically significant (Chi2 0.09). When differentiating between the classical and basal-like molecular subtypes of PDAC differences in CNA (high or low) were even less statistically significant (Chi2 0.292).

  Study EGAS50000001218

• Single-Cell Multiomics of the Immune Microenvironment in T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

  We present single-cell transcriptome and surface protein expression (CITE-seq) data from four healthy donors and fifteen pediatric T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) patients at diagnosis and at different treatment timepoints (days 1 &#8211; 6 and at time of remission). Mononuclear cells from peripheral blood (PB; longitudinal) or bone marrow (BM; diagnosis only) were isolated and CD45high immune cells and CD45dimCD7+ malignant cells were sorted and subsequently pooled to enrich for immune cells. For comparison,CD45high immune cells from four healthy donors were also sorted. Single-cell sequencing of the transcriptome and surface protein expression (204 antibodies) was performed using the 10x Genomics platform.Multiomics analyses resulted in the identification of a T-ALL subgroup characterized by a remodeled immune microenvironment at initial diagnosis. This immune landscape is dominated by the presence of non-malignant CD4-CD8-TCRab T cells that interact with CXCL16 expressing non-classical monocytes. Leukemia cell intrinsic transcriptional rewiring in these patients is associated with activation of Rap1 signaling.

  Study phs004269

• Human liver cholangiocyte organoids capture the heterogeneity of in vivo human liver ductal epithelium

  Human liver ductal epithelium is morphologically, functionally and transcriptionally heterogeneous. However, understanding the dynamics within human biliary/ductal epithelium has been hampered by the absence of an in vitro system that fully mimics its complex cellular heterogeneity. Here, we found that the human liver cholangiocyte (ductal-cell) organoids we previously published (Huch et al., 2015) are fairly homogenous and do not retain the cellular heterogeneity of the in vivo human biliary/ductal epithelium. Inspired by the knowledge of the in vivo niche, we refined our previous organoid culture medium to fully capture the cellular heterogeneity of the human ductal epithelium. We employed this refined system to analyse the interactions and relationships between the different human biliary epithelial cell states and discovered that acquiring a bipotent ductal cell state is necessary for differentiating the human ductal epithelium into functional hepatocyte-like cells. Our improved cholangiocyte organoid model represents a new platform to investigate cell plasticity and duct-to-hepatocyte differentiation in human liver.

  Study EGAS50000001000

• Chromatin remodeler CHD7 regulates the stem cell identity of human neural progenitors

  Multiple congenital disorders often present complex phenotypes, but how the mutation of individual genetic factors can lead to multiple defects remains poorly understood. In the present study, we used human neuroepithelial (NE) cells and CHARGE patient-derived cells as an in vitro model system to identify the function of chromodomain helicase DNA-binding 7 (CHD7) in NE?neural crest bifurcation, thus revealing an etiological link between the central nervous system (CNS) and craniofacial anomalies observed in CHARGE syndrome. We found that CHD7 is required for epigenetic activation of superenhancers and CNS-specific enhancers, which support the maintenance of the NE and CNS lineage identities. Furthermore, we found that BRN2 and SOX21 are downstream effectors of CHD7, which shapes cellular identities by enhancing a CNS-specific cellular program and indirectly repressing non- CNS-specific cellular programs. Based on our results, CHD7, through its interactions with superenhancer elements, acts as a regulatory hub in the orchestration of the spatiotemporal dynamics of transcription factors to regulate NE and CNS lineage identities.

  Study JGAS000131

• Dynamics of Tumor Heterogeneity from Primary to Metastatic Dissemination in Prostate Cancer

  PRO-SPeCT: PROstate cancer heterogeneity deconvolution through Single cell Profiling of Chromatin accessibility and Transcriptomic output Identifying drivers of cancer progression to guide treatment selection is hindered by limited abilities to understand tumor heterogeneity’s impact on evolution. Here, we delineated the phenotypic variability across ~300,000 prostate tumor cells collected from multiple loci in primary and matched locoregional metastases. We found inter-patient heterogeneity to be confined to malignant populations. While malignant cell populations exhibit intra-locus heterogeneity, they maintain inter-loci phenotypic similarity within a patient’s prostate gland. In addition, the intra-locus heterogeneity between malignant cell populations is paired with a common clonal architecture. Lastly, we show that malignant cell populations disseminating to locoregional lymph nodes mirror the clonal architecture and phenotypic heterogeneity observed across primary tumor loci while showcasing cell state transition toward inflammatory phenotypes. These findings provide insights into distinct measures of tumor heterogeneity, revealing diverse evolutionary paths across patients converging to common phenotypic adaptations in early prostate cancer progression.

  Study EGAS50000000524

• Whole genome sequencing data of pediatric B-other subtype acute lymphoblastic leukemia

  For a long time, approximately 70% of childhood B-ALL cases could be classified routinely, and the remaining 30% were classified into the “B-other” group lacking the known genetic features. However, more recently, new genomic tools have uncovered new subtypes among the B-other groups. Approximately 10% of B-ALL cases lack the recurrent genetic abnormalities, and are referred as "B-other". They are typically more heterogeneous than other subtypes of B-ALL, and their prognoses are more variable. In a more recent update of the B-ALL classification, 27 subtypes were identified (Arber et al., 2022). The identification of some of these subtypes is dependent on NGS methods, such as RNA sequencing, which are not routinely used in all clinical laboratories. For example, ETV6::RUNX1-like and DUX4-rearranged subtypes have been identified using RNA sequencing. For this study, subtype predictions for some of the cases is acquired from ALLIUM (Krali et al., NPJ Precis Oncol., 2023) and ALLCatchR (Beder et al., Blood, 2022) based on the RNA-seq profiles.

  Study EGAS50000001497

• Hyperdiploidy impairs fetal hematopoietic progenitor cell fitness and differentiation enabling persistence of rare preleukemic aneuploid clones

  Cells previously cryopreserved in FBS-10%DMSO were thawed and resuspended in 1mL of cold lysis buffer (10 mM Tris-HCl pH 7.4, 154 mM NaCl, 0.2% BSA, 0.1% NP-40, 1 mM CaCl₂, 0.5 mM MgCl₂ in ultra-pure water) to lyse the cell membrane and release intact nuclei. The nuclei were stained with propidium iodide (10 µg/mL) and Hoechst 33258 (10µg/mL) to facilitate sorting based on cell cycle state and viability. Single nuclei from 48 cells per sample were isolated into 96-well plates containing 5µL of freeze buffer (1X PBS, 7.5% DMSO, and 40% ProFreeze freezing medium (Lonza)) using a MoFlo Astrios cell sorter (Beckman Coulter) at the Flow Cytometry Unit of the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG), Netherlands. The plates were centrifuged at 500 g and stored at -80°C until library preparation. Single-nuclei libraries were prepared using a Bravo Automated Liquid Handling Platform (Agilent Technologies). Nuclei were lysed, and DNA was labelled with unique 10 bp dual barcodes and amplified as previously described. Sequencing was performed on an Illumina NextSeq 2000 platform with 77bp single end reads. The generated data were subsequently demultiplexed using sample-specific barcodes and converted to FASTQ files with bcl2fastq. Sequencing reads were aligned to the GRCh38/hg38 human reference genome using Bowtie2 (v2.2.4), and duplicate reads were marked with BamUtil (v1.0.3). Single-cell karyotypes were determined by performing copy number analysis using AneuFinder (v4.3.3) (https://github.com/ataudt/aneufinder). The analysis included GC-content correction and blacklisting of artifact regions identified from euploid controls. Copy number calling was conducted with the dnacopy and edivisive algorithms, employing a bin size of 1 Mb and a step size of 500 Kb. Libraries with an average of fewer than 10 reads per chromosome copy per bin or less than 95% concordance between the two algorithms were excluded from analysis. Whole-chromosome aneuploidies were identified when over 95% of bins exhibited deviation from the disomic state. Aneuploidy scores were calculated as weighted averages of absolute copy number deviations from the euploid state. 

  Dataset EGAD50000002314

• Distinct genomic profiles and clinical outcomes in constitutional mismatch repair deficiency-associated high-grade gliomas: insights into mutational signatures and clonal evolution

  Constitutional mismatch repair deficiency (CMMRD) is a rare cancer-predisposition syndrome, yet the mutational processes and clonal evolution of CMMRD-associated high-grade gliomas (HGGs) remain incompletely understood. In this study, mutational signatures and tumor evolution were analyzed in 25 CMMRD-associated HGGs. Germline biallelic mutations were most frequently identified in MSH6 (56.0%), followed by PMS2 (36.0%) and MLH1 (8.0%). Affected patients showed very early disease onset (mean 5.8 years) and poor clinical outcomes, with a mean progression-free survival of 16 months. Distinct genomic and clinical differences were observed between MSH6- and PMS2-associated tumors. MSH6-deficient HGGs were enriched for SBS6, whereas PMS2-deficient tumors showed predominance of SBS21, and these mutational signatures were correlated with prognosis. Clonal evolution analyses revealed early involvement of POLE/POLD1 mutations and persistence of the founding clone at recurrence. Overall, the study highlights the importance of mutational signatures and clonal evolution in shaping tumor behavior and clinical outcomes in CMMRD-associated HGGs.

  Study EGAS50000001506

• Passive and active DNA methylation and the interplay with genetic variation in gene regulation

  DNA methylation is an essential1 epigenetic mark whose role in gene regulation and its dependency on genomic sequence and environment are not yet fully understood2,3. In this study we provide novel insights into the mechanistic relationships between genetic variation, DNA methylation and transcriptome sequencing data in three different cell-types of the GenCord human population cohort4. We find that the association between DNA methylation and gene expression variation among individuals are likely due to different mechanisms from those establishing methylation-expression patterns during differentiation. Furthermore, cell-type differential DNA methylation may delineate a platform in which more local inter-individual changes may respond to or act in gene regulation. We show that unlike genetic regulatory variation, DNA methylation alone does not significantly drive allele specific expression.. Finally, inferred mechanistic relationships using genetic variation as well as correlations with TF abundance reveal both a passive and active role of DNA methylation to regulatory interactions influencing gene expression.

  Study EGAS00001000446

• DCIS fresh frozen fragmentomics dataset

  Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is a non-obligate precursor lesion of breast cancer (BC). Often detected by mammography, most cases are managed through surgical and/or radiotherapy approaches. Today, it is not possible to predict which patients will progress to invasive disease. Here, we evaluated high-depth whole-genome sequenced (WGS) DCIS, enriched for highgrade clinical lesions, to understand whether deep WGS could reveal biological insights and/or personalized therapeutic vulnerabilities that may be targetable. We find genomic locations that are likely susceptible to producing the initiating lesion for structural variations (SVs) prone to subsequent evolution, termed SHOREs (Susceptibility HOtspots for Rearrangements and ongoing Evolution). We additionally highlight individualized therapeutic potential that would otherwise not be appreciable without WGS. We posit that holistic WGS profiling could offer a more precise stratification approach, discerning higher-risk cases for prospective clinical studies on personalized therapies, from truly low-risk cases suitable for active monitoring. To substantiate our WGS findings, we also performed RNAseq on the same samples, this EGA study contains the RNAseq data.

  Study EGAS50000001475

• CD8+ T-cell exhaustion induced by leukemic cells drives progression in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

  In order to shed light on mechanisms that lead to CLL progression, we investigated longitudinal changes in both the genetic and immunological landscapes. For that, we analyzed paired samples obtained from CLL patients at diagnosis and progression before front-line treatment or at diagnosis and long-term asymptomatic follow-up. By whole-exome sequencing (WES), we found that CLL cells displayed limited genetic evolution at progression. Conversely, T cells from progressing patients showed significant immunophenotypical and transcriptional changes over time not observed in patients that did not progress. Specifically, we found that CD8+ T cells at progression were characterized by an increasing terminally exhausted effector phenotype (T-betdim/- Eomeshi PD1hi) with high co-expression of inhibitory receptors (PD1, CD244 and CD160). This exhausted status in CD8+ T cells was induced by progressing leukemic cells mainly through a mechanism dependent on soluble factors, including IL-10. Thus, we demonstrate that immunological changes are of paramount importance for CLL clinical progression, thereby providing a rationale for the use of early immunotherapeutic intervention in this disease.

  Study EGAS00001004116

• Liverpool Preterm Birth Biomarker Study

  Preterm birth is a multifactorial condition defined as birth less than 37 weeks of gestation. This study aimed to identify early pregnancy biomarkers from maternal genome-wide and transcriptome-wide data of women experiencing two types of spontaneous PTB (sPTB): spontaneous preterm birth (SPTB) and preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM). Whole blood samples were obtained from women with singleton pregnancies (N=567) recruited at the Liverpool Women’s Hospital at 16 and 20 weeks of gestation. Women with a previous history of sPTB pregnancies &lt;34 weeks were categorised on their index pregnancy outcome as spontaneous preterm birth (SPTB) and preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM) or high-risk term control (HTERM, ≥37 weeks). Women with no history of SPTB/PPROM and delivered at term were LTERM (≥39 weeks of gestation). DNA was genotyped on the UK Biobank Axiom™ array (Applied Biosystems™, Thermo Fisher Scientific) and RNA who processed using the Clariom™ D Human assay (Thermo Fisher Scientific). Genome-wide association analysis, differential expression analysis and expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) were completed.

  Study EGAS00001005076

• Lineage-specific genome architecture links disease variants to target genes

  Long-range interactions between DNA regulatory elements and their target genes play major roles in gene regulation. The vast majority of interactions are uncharted, constituting a major missing link in understanding genome control. Here we use promoter capture Hi-C to identify interacting regions of 31,253 promoters in 17 human primary haematopoietic cell types. We show that long-range promoter interactions are highly cell-type specific, preferentially linking active promoters and enhancers. Patterns of promoter interactions reflect cell lineage relationships of the hematopoietic tree, consistent with dynamic remodeling of nuclear architecture during differentiation. Interacting regions are enriched for expression quantitative trait loci with effects on their interacting target genes. We exploit this rich resource of interactome maps to connect non-coding disease variants to their target promoters, identifying thousands of new disease-candidate genes, and implicating a number of gene pathways in disease susceptibility. Our results demonstrate the power of promoter interactomes from primary cells to reveal insights into genomic regulatory mechanisms underlying common diseases.

  Study EGAS00001001911

• Intratumoral Heterogeneity and Clonal Evolution Induced by HPV Integration.

  The human papillomavirus (HPV) genome is integrated into host DNA in most HPV-positive cancers, but the consequences for chromosomal integrity are unknown. Continuous long-read sequencing of oropharyngeal cancers and cancer cell lines revealed a unique form of structural variation, termed heterocateny here, characterized by heterogeneous, interrelated, and repetative patterns of concatemerized virus and host DNA segments. Evidence of heterocateny was detected in extrachromosomal and/or intrachromosomal DNA in all cases. Unique breakpoint sequences shared across structurally heterogeneous virus-host concatemers within each cancer facilitated stepwise reconstruction of their evolution from a common molecular ancestor. This analysis revealed that unstable virus and virus-host concatemers in ecDNA or integrated form mediate insertion into and excision from chromosomes, capture, rearrangement, and rolling-circle amplification of host DNA, and chromosomal rearrangements. The data indicate that heterocatena is driven by the dynamic, aberrant replication and recombination of an oncogenic DNA virus, thereby extending known consequences of HPV integration to include promotion of intra-tumoral heterogeneity and clonal evolution.

  Study EGAS00001006652

• CD36 defines CML cells less sensitive to imatinib

  Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are highly effective for treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), but very few patients are cured. Major drawbacks with TKIs are their low efficacy in eradicating the leukemic stem cells responsible for disease maintenance and relapse upon TKI cessation. Here, we performed RNA-sequencing of flow-sorted primitive (CD34+CD38low) and progenitor (CD34+CD38+) chronic phase CML cells and identified transcriptional upregulation of 32 cell surface molecules relative to corresponding normal bone marrow cells. Focusing on novel markers with increased expression on primitive CML cells, we confirmed upregulation of the scavenger receptor CD36 and the leptin receptor (LEPR) by flow cytometry. We also delineate a subpopulation of primitive CML cells expressing CD36 that is less sensitive to imatinib treatment. Using CD36 targeting antibodies, we show that the CD36 positive cells can be targeted and killed by antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC). In summary, CD36 defines a subpopulation of primitive CML cells with decreased imatinib sensitivity that can be effectively targeted by ADCC using an anti-CD36 antibody.

  Study EGAS00001002421

• Combination therapies to inhibit LCK tyrosine kinase and mTOR signaling in T-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

  Relapse and refractory T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) has a poor prognosis and new combination therapies are sorely needed. This work uncovered potent drug synergies between AKT/mTORC1 inhibitors and the general tyrosine kinase-inhibitor, dasatinib. The combination effectively curbed T-ALL growth in human cell lines and primary human T-ALL samples, and was well tolerated and effective in suppressing leukemia growth in patient-derived xenografts grown in mice. Mechanistically, dasatinib inhibited phosphorylation and activation of the lymphocyte-specific protein tyrosine kinase (LCK) to blunt the T-cell receptor (TCR) signaling pathway and when complexed with mTORC1 inhibition, induced potent T-ALL cell killing through reducing MCL-1 protein expression. Analysis of responses across T-ALL subtypes and association with specific genetic mutations or expression patterns failed to identify any obvious biomarkers or correlations in predicting therapy responses, although there appeared to be a trend toward higher TCR/LCK pathway activity in samples that exhibited synergistic therapy responses.

  Study EGAS00001005945

• Mutational analysis reveals the origin and therapy-driven evolution of recurrent glioma

  Tumor recurrence is a leading cause of cancer mortality. Therapies for recurrent disease may fail, at least in part, because the genomic alterations driving the growth of recurrences are distinct from those in the initial tumor. To explore this hypothesis, we sequenced the exomes of 23 initial low-grade gliomas and recurrent tumors resected from the same patients. In 43% of cases, at least half of the mutations in the initial tumor were undetected at recurrence, including driver mutations inTP53, ATRX, SMARCA4, and BRAF; this suggests that recurrent tumors are often seeded by cells derived from the initial tumor at a very early stage of their evolution. Notably, tumors from 6 of 10 patients treated with the chemotherapeutic drug temozolomide (TMZ) followed an alternative evolutionary path to high-grade glioma. At recurrence, these tumors were hypermutated and harbored driver mutations in the RB (retinoblastoma) and Akt-mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) pathways that bore the signature of TMZ-induced mutagenesis.

  Study EGAS00001000579

• Multiple Myeloma follow-up sequencing study

  A total of 40 Multiple Myeloma (MM) patients at clinical relapse who progressed during Proteasome Inhibitors (PIs) or Immunomodulating Drugs (IMiDs)-based therapies and who are assigned to antiCD38-based salvage treatments, will be enrolled. We will collect bone marrow (BM) and peripheral blood (PB) samples from patients at specific timepoints: baseline (BM, PB and buccal swab) every 3 month (PB) achievement of response (≥ Very Good Partial Response (VGPR)) (BM and PB) relapse or refractory status to antiCD38-based treatments (BM and PB) Samples will be processed and stored in the "Hematological Laboratory" located in the University of Turin (Italy) for various proposed analyses: at specific time-points CD138+ (Plasma Cells-PCs) awill be immunomagnetically enriched from the BM mononuclear cells and frozen as viable cells in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO); PB mononuclear cells (PBMCs) will be isolated from whole blood by density-gradient centrifugation, and frozen as above; plasma fraction from PB and BM will be obtained by centrifugation and stored frozen; Neutrophils will be obtained at the time of enrollment as a source of control germline DNA and stored frozen.

  Study EGAS00001007092

• Recursive splicing in long vertebrate genes

  Recent studies have shown that expression of many genes with exceptionally long introns in the mammalian brain can be perturbed by regulatory factors linked to neurodevelopmental or neurodegenerative disorders1-3, suggesting unique regulatory mechanisms. Here we identify functional recursive splice sites (RSS) in long introns of genes expressed in the brain. These RSS are highly conserved in genes with extreme length across diverse vertebrate species and permit step-wise removal of long introns via recursive splicing. Recursive splicing requires initial definition of a “recursive exon” that is located downstream of RSS, and most often contains premature stop codons. Moreover, we show that RSS create a splicing switch driven by splice site competition in order to distinguish primary mRNA isoforms from alternative isoforms that are prevalent in long genes. The recursive exon is not detectable in the dominant mRNA isoform due to recursive splicing, but is completely included when cryptic promoters or other cryptic exons are used. Thus, by coupling inclusion of recursive exons with the use of cryptic elements, RSS act to distinguish new mRNA isoforms emerging from long genes.

  Study EGAS00001001170

• Analysis of DNA methylation in normal B cells and chronic lymphocytic leukemia

  Charting differences between tumors and normal tissue is a mainstay of cancer research. However, clonal tumor expansion from complex normal tissue architectures potentially obscures cancer-specific events, including divergent epigenetic patterns. Using whole-genome bisulfite sequencing of normal B cell subsets, we observed broad epigenetic programming of selective transcription factor binding sites coincident with the degree of B cell maturation. By comparing normal B cells to malignant B cells from 268 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), we showed that tumors derive largely from a continuum of maturation states reflected in normal developmental stages. Epigenetic maturation in CLL was associated with an indolent gene expression pattern and increasingly favorable clinical outcomes.As second study using these samples focued on evolution and resulting intra-tumor heterogeneity in CLL. We used 450k bead-chip arrays to study DNA methylomes in 68 chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cases, including 28 serial cases. The result establishs linked evolution of epigenetic and genetic alterations in progressive disease, revealing an important aspect of the biology of epigenetics in cancer.

  Study EGAS00001000534

• MED12L Gene Alterations Define Aggressive BRCA2-Mutant Prostate Cancers

  Germline mutation of BRCA2 increases the lifetime risk of developing prostate cancer (PCa) by over 700%. BRCA2-mutant PCa have poorer prognosis than sporadic PCa, with rapid development of metastatic, castrate-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) and 5-year cancer-specific survival rates of ~50-60%1-4. Despite this, unique genomic driver events that explain the aggressiveness of localized BRCA2-mutant PCa are lacking. We used whole-genome sequencing to fully characterize 14 BRCA2-mutant PCa and demonstrate that BRCA2-mutant PCa is associated with increased genetic instability and a mutually exclusive mutational burden when compared to sporadic PCa. Importantly, BRCA2-mutated cancers are defined by unique copy number gains and hypomethylation events, including alterations in the MED12L/MED12 axis, which are found solely in mCRPC and are enriched in PCa tumours harbouring aggressive intraductal carcinoma (IDC-P) pathologic sub-types. Our findings begin to explain the clinical entity of BRCA2-mutated PCa as these tumours have a unique and aggressive genotype de novo, associated with IDC-P and mCRPC, even in the hormone-naive setting.

  Study EGAS00001001615

• Assessment_of_epigenetic_variation_in_human_iPS_cells_Medip

  n order to progress human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) towards the clinic, several outstanding questions must be addressed. It is possible to reprogram different somatic cell types into hiPSCs and from studies in the mouse, it appears that an epigenetic memory of the starting cell type is carried over to hiPSCs. However a comprehensive comparative study of the characteristics of these hiPSCs has been missing from the literature. Importantly studies which aimed to address these aspects of hiPSCs have used cells from different patients. In order to avoid this important confounding variable and to keep the genetic background constant, tissue samples were procured from the patients and reprogrammed to iPS cells. The methylation status of these iPS cells will be compared.Protocol:Primary cell cultures were generated and reprogrammed to iPS cells. DNA was extracted and immunoprecipitated using anti-methyl cytosine and anti-hydroxymethyl cytosine antibodies.This data is part of a pre-publication release. For information on the proper use of pre-publication data shared by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (including details of any publication moratoria), please see http://www.sanger.ac.uk/datasharing/

  Study EGAS00001000741

• Genomes of Relapsing Neuroblastoma

  Neuroblastoma is a malignancy of the developing sympathetic nervous system that is often lethal when relapse occurs, but the molecular mechanisms behind this process are poorly defined. We here used whole-exome sequencing, mRNA expression, array CGH and DNA methylation analysis to holistically characterize 16 paired samples from neuroblastoma patients at diagnosis and relapse. The mutational burden significantly increased in relapsing tumors accompanied by altered mutational signatures and reduced subclonal heterogeneity. Global allele frequencies at relapse indicated clonal mutation selection during disease progression. Promoter methylation patterns were consistent over disease course and patient-specific. Recurrent alterations at relapse included mutations in the putative CHD5 neuroblastoma tumor suppressor, chromosome 9p losses, DOCK8 mutations, inactivating mutations in PTPN14 and a relapse-specific activity pattern for the PTPN14 target gene, YAP. Recurrent new mutations in HRAS, KRAS, DOCK8 and genes mediating cell-cell interaction in 13/16 relapse tumors also indicate disturbances in signaling pathways mediating mesenchymal transition. Our data shed first light on genetic alteration frequency, identity and evolution in neuroblastoma.

  Study EGAS00001001387

• HipSci - Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Initiative

  Human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can be generated from adult tissues and differentiated into a range of specific cell types (Yamanaka and Blau, 2010). They therefore provide unprecedented opportunities for investigating disease mechanisms and understanding the phenotypic consequences of genetic variation within the normal population. HipSci brings together diverse constitutents in genomics, proteomics, cell biology and clinical genetics to create a UK national iPS cell resource and use it to carry out cellular genetic studies. Between 2013 and 2016 we aim to generate iPS cells from over 500 healthy individuals and 500 individuals with genetic disease. We will then use these cells to discover how genomic variation impacts on cellular phenotype and identify new disease mechanisms. Strong links with NHS investigators will ensure that studies on the disease-associated cell lines will be linked to extensive clinical information. Further key features of the project are an open access model of data sharing; engagement of the wider clinical genetics community in selecting patient samples; and provision of dedicated laboratory space for collaborative cell phenotyping and differentiation.

  Study EGAS00001001465

• Pilot_experiment_on_functional_genomics_in_osteoarthritis

  The aim of this work is to apply an integrated systems approach to understand the biological underpinnings of large joint (hip and knee) osteoarthritis which culminates in the need for total joint replacement (TJR). In this pilot we will assess the feasibility of the approach in the relevant tissue. We will obtain diseased and non-diseased tissue (cartilage and endochondral bone) following TJR, coupled with a blood sample, from 12 patients. We will generate genotype data on the HumanCoreExome array and will characterise the 12 pairs of diseased and non-diseased tissue samples in terms of methylation (Illumina 450k array), transcription (RNASeq) and expression (quantitative proteomics). The pilot will help assess the feasibility of isolating sufficient levels of starting material for the different approaches, and will instigate the development of analytical approaches to synthesising the resulting data. If successful, it is envisaged that we will proceed with expanding the work to 500 patients in the first year, with a target total sample size of 3,000 in the longer term. The key collaborators in this work are Mark Wilkinson (Sheffield) and Jyoti Choudhary

  Study EGAS00001001212

• reChIP-seq reveals widespread bivalency of H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 in CD4+ memory T-Cells

  Identification of genomic loci exhibiting the physical co-localization of two distinct DNA-associated proteins remains a technical challenge. To tackle this challenge we have developed a novel reChIP-seq approach that enriches for two distinct DNA-associated proteins in an unbiased and genome-wide manner. We illustrate the utility of our approach by identifying nucleosomes bivalently modified by H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 in primary human CD4+ central memory T-cells (TCMs). We unravel widespread bivalency of many unmethylated CpG-rich regions in TCMs overlapping with transcriptional start sites of developmental regulators. Furthermore, reChIP-seq uncovers two yet unobserved classes of bivalency, where either H3K4me3 or H3K27me3 is mixed with low but detectable bivalency. We provide evidence that bivalency is established by an interplay between genome and epigenome and thus attains stability. Our described reChIP-seq approach augments conventional ChIP-seq and is broadly applicable in the study of co-localization of DNA-associated proteins to unravel the intricate possibilities of combinatorial action.

  Study EGAS00001001568

• Sequencing_component_for_the_whole_genome_methylation_analysis_in_PBMCs_and_cell_subsets__pilot_study_

  DNA methylation has been shown to play a major role in determining cellular phenotype by regulating gene expression. Moreover, dysregulation of differentially methylated genes has been implicated in disease pathogenesis of various conditions including cancer development as well as autoimmune diseases such as systemic Lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis. Evidence is rapidly accumulating for a role of DNA methylation in regulating immune responses in health and disease. However, the exact mechanisms remain unknown. The overall aim of the project is to investigate the role of epigenetic mechanisms in regulating immunity and their impact on autoimmune disease pathogenesis.The aim of this pilot study is to perform whole genome methylation analysis in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and cell subsets (CD4, CD8, CD14, CD19, CD16 and whole PBMCs) obtained from 6 healthy volunteers. Whole genome methylation analysis will be performed using two methodological approaches, the Infinium Methylation Bead Array K450 (Illumina) and MeDIP-seq. mRNA expression arrays will also be performed in order to correlate DNA methylation with gene expression as well as genotyping on the Illumina OmniExpress chip

  Study EGAS00001000490

• The whole blood of female volunteers and sperm from the male volunteer were used to extract genomic DNA to do whole genome sequencing. Distinguished SNPs between parental genomes were retained to analyze parental allele-specific DNA methylation and chromatin accessibility in scCOOL-seq data.

  DNA methylation, chromatin states, and their interrelationships represent critical epigenetic information, but those are largely unknown in human early embryos. Here, we apply scCOOL-seq (Chromatin Overall Omic-scale Landscape Sequencing) to generate a genome-wide map of DNA methylation and chromatin accessibility at single-cell resolution during human preimplantation development. Unlike in mice, the chromatin of paternal genome is already more open than that of maternal genome at the mid-zygote stage in humans, and this state is maintained until the 4-cell stage. After fertilization, genes with high variations in DNA methylation and those with high variations in chromatin accessibility tend to be two different sets. Furthermore, 1,797 (35%) out of 5,155 widely open chromatin regions in promoters closed when transcription activity was inhibited, indicating a feedback mechanism between transcription and open chromatin maintenance. Our work paves the way for dissecting the complex, yet highly coordinated, epigenetic reprogramming during human preimplantation development.

  Study EGAS00001002987

• Analysis of translatome, truncating mutations, lncRNA, circRNA and microproteins of 80 human DCM cases and controls

  The regulation of gene expression in healthy and diseased human tissues is incompletely understood and has primarily been studied on the transcriptional level. Here, we quantify the impact of translation on gene expression and annotate novel translational events in 80 human hearts. These include 65 tissues from patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) - the most common cause of heart transplantation – and 15 unaffected controls. We show that translational regulation modulates disease-associated molecular processes. Further, we evaluate ribosome dynamics at protein truncating variants revealing incomplete termination of translation at titin-truncating variants (TTNtv) that commonly cause DCM. Finally, we identify dozens of unknown microproteins translated from lncRNAs and circRNAs and link these to mitochondrial processes. Several microproteins are expressed from lncRNAs with previously demonstrated function, suggesting a dual coding and noncoding role. This resource will stimulate novel functional investigations into cardiac biology in health and disease and may serve as a blueprint for characterizing the translational landscape of other human tissues.

  Study EGAS00001003263

• Circulating Tumor DNA Analysis Detects Minimal Residual Disease and Predicts Recurrence in Patients with Stage II Colon Cancer

  Detection of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) after resection of stage II colon cancer may identify those at the highest risk of recurrence and help inform adjuvant treatment decisions. We used massively-parallel-sequencing–based assays to evaluate the ability of ctDNA to detect minimal residual disease in 1046 plasma samples from a prospective cohort of 230 patients with resected stage II colon cancer. In patients not treated with adjuvant chemotherapy, ctDNA was detected post-operatively in 14 of 178 (7.9%) patients, 11 (79%) of whom had recurred at a median follow-up of 27 months; recurrence occurred in only 16 (9.8 %) of the 164 patients with negative ctDNA (HR, 18; 95% confidence interval [CI], 7.9 to 36; P&lt;0.001). In patients treated with chemotherapy, the presence of ctDNA following completion of chemotherapy was also associated with an inferior recurrence-free survival (HR, 11; 95% CI, 1.8 to 68; P=0.001). ctDNA detection after stage II colon cancer resection provides direct evidence of residual disease and identifies patients at very high risk of recurrence.

  Study EGAS00001001839

• HCA_Placental_Infection_Atlas

  HCA Placental Infection Atlas Self-renewing human trophoblast stem cells (hTSC) can give rise to major trophoblast lineages, including syncytiotrophoblast (SCT) and extravillous trophoblast (EVT). hTSC has facilitated the study of placental development and function in vitro. Here, we aim to utilise the hTSC line (HMDMC 20/0005) to study human placental infection and inflammation. This study will provide the opportunity to better understand the pathogenesis of human placenta in the event of infection and inflammation. In brief, differentiated hTSC will be infected with relevant pathogens and stimulated with a panel of inflammatory cytokines. We will use single-cell genomic and spatial approaches to characterise cellular heterogeneity in response to infection or cytokines stimulus. In parallel, we will investigate the interaction between iPSC-derived macrophages with different trophoblast lineages during the course of infection using single-cell genomic and spatial methods. This data is part of a pre-publication release. For information on the proper use of pre-publication data shared by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (including details of any publication moratoria), please see http://www.sanger.ac.uk/datasharing/

  Study EGAS00001004722

• Primary prostate Hi-C

  Prostate cancer is a heterogeneous disease whose progression is linked to genome instability. Despite large-scale tumour sequencing efforts, the impact of mutations on the genetic architecture in cancer remains ill-defined due to limited integration of genomics data across dimensions. We addressed this limitation by assessing the impact of structural variants on the chromatin states and the three-dimensional organization across benign and malignant primary prostate genomes. We find high concordance in the three-dimensional genome organization between malignant and benign prostate tissues, arguing for constraints to the three-dimensional genome of prostate tumours. Moreover, we identify structural variants as effectors of changes to focal chromatin interactions, guiding cis-regulatory element hijacking that imposes opposing expression changes on genes found at antipodes of a rearrangement. This leads to the repression of tumour suppressor gene expression and up-regulation of oncogenes, such as at the TMPRSS2-ERG and PMEPA1-ZNF156 loci. Collectively, our results argue that cis-regulatory element hijacking by structural variants overshadows large-scale topological changes to alter gene regulation and promote oncogenesis.

  Study EGAS00001005014

• The ICGC-TCGA DREAM Somatic Mutation Calling - Tumour Heterogeneity Challenge

  Tumors are composed of many different cell types, ranging from the normal tissue micro-environment, infiltrating immune cells and tumour cells. This group of tumour cells is itself intrinsically highly heterogeneous, driven by the rapid mutation rate of cancer cells to become a mixture of different sub-populations. These different types of cells, called subclones, have different sets of mutations in their DNA. Because some subclones evolve from others, many subclones share mutations. While it is increasingly easy to determine what mutations are present in the tumor, it remains very difficult to determine which subclones have which mutations. The task of assigning mutations to subclones is called subclonal reconstruction.The ICGC-TCGA DREAM Somatic Mutation Calling - Tumour Heterogeneity Challenge (SMC-Het) is an international effort to improve standard methods for subclonal reconstruction: to quantify and genotype each individual cell population present within a tumor. The goal of this challenge is to identify the best subclonal reconstruction algorithms and to identify the conditions that affect their performance.

  Study EGAS00001002092

• Pilot_experiment_on_functional_genomics_in_osteoarthritis

  The aim of this work is to apply an integrated systems approach to understand the biological underpinnings of large joint (hip and knee) osteoarthritis which culminates in the need for total joint replacement (TJR). In this pilot we will assess the feasibility of the approach in the relevant tissue. We will obtain diseased and non-diseased tissue (cartilage and endochondral bone) following TJR, coupled with a blood sample, from 12 patients. We will generate genotype data on the HumanCoreExome array and will characterise the 12 pairs of diseased and non-diseased tissue samples in terms of methylation (Illumina 450k array), transcription (RNASeq) and expression (quantitative proteomics). The pilot will help assess the feasibility of isolating sufficient levels of starting material for the different approaches, and will instigate the development of analytical approaches to synthesising the resulting data. If successful, it is envisaged that we will proceed with expanding the work to 500 patients in the first year, with a target total sample size of 3,000 in the longer term. The key collaborators in this work are Mark Wilkinson (Sheffield) and Jyoti Choudhary

  Study EGAS00001001213

• HCA_Female_Reporductive_Adult_WSSS_RNA

  Cell atlas of the human placenta The Human Cell Atlas initiative is an ambitious global research effort which aims to describe every cell in the human body across all developmental stages to generate a reference map to accelerate progress in science and medicine particularly relating to human development and disease. The initiative is led by investigators based at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and funding support from the Wellcome and NIH. This specific project will assess human development. We aim to interrogate the cellular composition and molecular regulators underpinning development and maturation through single cell RNA-sequencing/spatial transcriptomics and computational algorithms to predict cellular developmental trajectories and cell-cell interactions. We will subsequent validate these findings in situ using allied imaging technologies e.g. immunohistochemistry and RNAscope and in vitro culture of human intestinal organoids (HIOs). This data is part of a pre-publication release. For information on the proper use of pre-publication data shared by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (including details of any publication moratoria), please see http://www.sanger.ac.uk/datasharing/

  Study EGAS00001004210

• Genomic and functional fidelity of small cell lung cancer patient-derived xenografts

  Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) patient-derived xenografts (PDXs) can be generated from biopsies or circulating tumor cells (CTCs), though scarcity of tissue and low efficiency of tumor growth have previously limited these approaches. Applying an established clinical-translational pipeline for tissue collection and an automated microfluidic platform for CTC-enrichment, we generated 17 biopsy-derived PDXs and 17 CTC-derived PDXs in a two-year timeframe, at efficiencies of 89% and 38%, respectively. Whole exome sequencing showed that somatic alterations are stably maintained between patient tumors and PDXs. Early-passage PDXs maintain the genomic and transcriptional profiles of the founder PDX. In vivo treatment with etoposide and cisplatin (EP) in 30 PDX models demonstrated greater sensitivity in PDXs from EP naïve patients, and resistance to EP corresponded to increased expression of a MYC gene signature. Finally, serial CTC-derived PDXs generated from an individual patient at multiple time points accurately recapitulated the evolving drug sensitivities of that patient’s disease. Collectively, this work highlights the translational potential of this strategy.

  Study EGAS00001002853

• An instructive role for IL7RA in the development of human B-cell precursor leukemia

  Kinase signaling fuels growth of B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL). Yet its role in leukemia initiation is unclear and has not been shown in primary human hematopoietic cells. We previously described activating mutations in interleukin-7 receptor alpha (IL7RA) in poor-prognosis “ph-like” BCP-ALL. Here we show that expression of activated mutant IL7RA in human CD34+ hematopoietic cells creates a preleukemic state in transplanted NOD/LtSz-scid IL2Rγnull mice, characterized by persistence of self-renewing Pro-B cells with non-productive V(D)J gene rearrangements. Preleukemic CD34+CD10highCD19+ cells evolved to a BCP-ALL with spontaneously acquired CDKN2A deletions as commonly observed in primary human BCP-ALL. CRISPR mediated silencing of CDKN2A in primary human CD34+ cells transduced with activated IL7RA resulted in robust development of BCP-ALLs in-vivo. Thus, we demonstrate for the first time that constitutive activation of IL7RA can initiate preleukemia in primary human hematopoietic progenitors and cooperates with CDKN2A silencing in progression into BCP-ALL.

  Study EGAS00001005347

• HCA_Placenta_Adult_Vento_RNA

  The Human Cell Atlas initiative is an ambitious global research effort which aims to describe every cell in the human body across all developmental stages to generate a reference map to accelerate progress in science and medicine particularly relating to human development and disease. The initiative is led by investigators based at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and funding support from the Wellcome and NIH. This specific project will assess human development. We aim to interrogate the cellular composition and molecular regulators underpinning development and maturation through single cell RNA-sequencing/spatial transcriptomics and computational algorithms to predict cellular developmental trajectories and cell-cell interactions. We will subsequent validate these findings in situ using allied imaging technologies e.g. immunohistochemistry and RNAscope and in vitro culture of human intestinal organoids (HIOs). This data is part of a pre-publication release. For information on the proper use of pre-publication data shared by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (including details of any publication moratoria), please see http://www.sanger.ac.uk/datasharing/

  Study EGAS00001004069

• Combined Metabolic Activators Reduces Liver Fat in Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Patients

  Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) refers to excess fat accumulation in the liver. In animal experiments and human kinetic study, we found that administration of combined metabolic activators (CMA) promotes the oxidation of fat, attenuates the resulting oxidative stress, activates mitochondria and eventually removes excess fat from the liver. Here, we tested the safety and efficacy of CMA in NAFLD patients in a placebo-controlled 10-week study. We found that CMA significantly decreased hepatic steatosis and levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, uric acid, and creatinine, whereas found no differences on these variables in the placebo group after adjustment for weight loss. By integrating clinical data with plasma metabolomics and inflammatory proteomics as well as oral and gut metagenomics data, we revealed the underlying molecular mechanisms associated with the reduced hepatic fat and inflammation in NAFLD patients and identified the key players involved in the host-microbiome interactions. In conclusion, we showed that CMA can be used to develop a pharmacological treatment strategy in NAFLD patients.

  Study EGAS00001005616

• Multi-omic analysis of cell-of-origin and epigenomic state in pediatric H3K27M gliomas

  It is not known whether midline pediatric gliomas driven by Histone 3 K27M mutations (oncohistones) or EZHIP expression (oncohistone-mimics) share a common cell-of-origin, or arise from distinct cell types with unique vulnerabilities to PRC2 inhibition and partner alterations. Here, we define the etiological and oncogenic relationship between pediatric midline gliomas characterized by inhibition of K27M and K27M-like oncohistones. We assemble an extensive reference for gliogenesis from the developing mouse and human fetal brain. With bulk and single-cell transcriptomics and epigenomics, we profiled a large cohort of primary tumors comprising H3.1K27M and H3.3K27M pontine gliomas, H3.3K27M thalamic gliomas, and EZHIP+ posterior fossa ependymomas. We focus on differences across axes of location (thalamus vs. pons vs. posterior fossa), tumor type (diffuse midline gliomas vs. ependymomas), and oncohistone (H3.1/2K27M vs. H3.3K27M vs. EZHIP). We use tumor molecular features to delineate transcriptional states and cell-of-origin in each entity. Finally, we use culture models in isogenic contexts to interrogate the effect of each oncohistone or mimic.

  Study EGAS00001005773

• Single-nuclei gene-expression analysis of pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma links tumor subtypes with tumor microenvironment

  Pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas (PCPG) are rare neuroendocrine tumors associated with autonomic nerves. We used single nuclei-RNA-seq (snRNA-seq) for analysis of 30 PCPG representing 13 known driver genes, plus two normal adrenal medullas to dissect cell composition, refine PCPG subtypes and compare PCPG and normal tissue expression. Incorporating bulk-tissue and snRNA-seq data we identified seven PCPG gene-expression subtypes with genotype and cell type associations. The tumor microenvironment reflected HIF pathway activation and neovascularization by detection of abundant tip-like endothelial cells and pericytes concordant with VEGFA expression in neoplastic cells with mutations in VHL, genes encoding SDH subunits and MAML3-fusions. Macrophages were abundant in PCPG with distinct tumor-associated features. Schwann-cell-like cells were also enriched in some subtypes. The transcriptional profile of neoplastic PCPG cells resembled normal chromaffin cells but early chromaffin and neuroblast cell markers were expressed in some subtypes including GPR139, a putative therapeutic target for a subset of pseudohypoxic PCPG.

  Study EGAS00001005861

• Proteogenomics reveals two distinct biological pilocytic astrocytoma subgroups

  Pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) is the most common pediatric brain tumor and driven by aberrant MAPK signaling, typically mediated by BRAF alterations. While five-year overall survival rates exceed 95%, tumor recurrence constitutes a major clinical challenge in incompletely resected tumors despite chemotherapeutic or radiation based therapies. Therefore, we used proteogenomics to discern the biological heterogeneity of PA to improve classification of this tumor entity and identify novel therapeutic targets. Our proteogenomics approach integrates RNA sequencing and LC/MS-based proteomic profiling data from a cohort of 58 confirmed, primary PA samples. An integrative genomics approach was conducted to discern the biological heterogeneity of PA and to identify aberrant pathway activation in these biological subgroups. In summary, Pilocytic astrocytomas segregate into two groups where younger patients are significantly associated with Group 1. Importantly, we validate the two distinct biological subgroups in two non-overlapping cohorts. The biological heterogeneity seen here may improve biological classification and reveal novel therapeutic targets specifically useful for non-resectable tumors with high risk of recurrent or progressive disease.

  Study EGAS00001006402

• Genomic analysis and evolutionary modeling of breast and larynx cancer, based on specimens from Polish population

  We explore the genomic characteristics of the original dataset of breast and larynx cancer specimens of several cell types from the collection of the Department of Applied Radiology of the Maria Sklodowska-Curie National Research Institute of Oncology, Krakow (Poland) Branch and Institute of Human Genetics Polish Academy of Sciences. DNA from paired tissue samples from primary tumor locations and concurrent metastasis to regional lymph nodes was sequenced and matched to controls. A range of genomic analyses was carried out, such as estimation of variant allele frequencies (VAF) and copy number variation (CNV). They show that subsets of variants from primary tumors are present in metastatic lymph nodes and that the CNV pattern is similar, but not identical to that known in the literature. In addition to that, we fit the VAF data to theoretical site frequency spectra predicted by multiple models found in the literature. Analysis suggests existence of secondary advantageous subclones arising on the clonal background as well as of a number of neutral or slightly deleterious passenger mutations.

  Study EGAS00001006456

• The Precision Medicine in Liver Cancer across an Asia-pacific NETwork (PLANET) - Intratumoural immune heterogeneity

  The clinical relevance of immune landscape intratumoural heterogeneity (immune-ITH) and its role in tumour evolution remain largely unexplored. Here, we uncover significant spatial and phenotypic immune–ITH from multiple tumour sectors and decipher its relationship with tumour evolution and disease progression in hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC). Immune–ITH is associated with tumour transcriptomic-ITH, mutational burden, and distinct immune microenvironments. Tumours with low immune–ITH experience higher immunoselective pressure and escape via loss of heterozygosity in human leukocyte antigens and immunoediting. Instead, the tumours with high immune-ITH evolve to a more immunosuppressive/exhausted microenvironment. This gradient of immune pressure along with immune-ITH represents a hallmark of tumour evolution, which is closely linked to the transcriptome-immune networks that contributes to disease progression and immune inactivation. Remarkably, high immune-ITH and its transcriptomic signature are predictive for worse clinical outcome in HCC patients. This in-depth investigation of ITH provides evidence on tumour-immune co-evolution along HCC progression.

  Study EGAS00001003814

• Relation between transcriptome, karyotype and age in cases of sex chromosome aneuploidies.

  Why women live longer than men is still an open question in human biology. Sex chromosomes have been proposed to play a role in the observed sex gap in longevity, and the Y male chromosome has been suspected of having a potential toxic genomic impact on male longevity. It has been hypothesized that transposable element (TE) repression declines with age, potentially leading to detrimental effects such as somatic mutations and disrupted gene expression, which may accelerate the aging process. Given that the Y chromosome is rich in repeats, age-related increases in TE expression could be more pronounced in males, likely contributing to their reduced longevity compared to females. In this work, we first studied whether TE expression is associated with the number of sex chromosomes in humans. We analyzed blood transcriptomic data obtained from individuals of different karyotype compositions: 46,XX females (normal female karyotype), 46,XY males (normal male karyotype), as well as males with abnormal karyotypes, such as 47,XXY, and 47,XYY.

  Study EGAS00001007462

• Sequential Antigen-loss and Branching Evolution in Lymphoma after Anti-CD19 and Anti-CD20 Targeted T Cell Engaging Immunotherapy

  CD19 CAR T cells and CD20 targeting T cell engaging bispecific antibodies have been approved in B-cell Non-Hodgkin lymphoma lately, heralding a new clinical setting where patients are treated with both approaches, sequentially. The aim of our study was to investigate the selective pressure of CD19 and CD20 directed therapy on the clonal architecture in lymphoma. Using a broad analytical pipeline, we identified truncating mutations in the gene encoding CD20 conferring antigen loss in 80% of patients relapsing from CD20 bispecs. Pronounced T cell exhaustion was identified in cases with progressive disease and retained CD20 expression. We also confirmed CD19 loss after CAR T cell therapy and report the case of sequential CD19 and CD20 loss. We observed branching evolution with re-emergence of CD20 positive subclones at later time points and spatial heterogeneity for CD20 expression in response to targeted therapy. Our results highlight immunotherapy as an evolutionary bottleneck selecting for antigen-loss variants but also complex evolutionary pathways underlying disease progression from these novel therapies.

  Study EGAS00001007561

• Genomic Advances in Sepsis (GAinS): RNA-seq

  Sepsis is defined as life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection. This cohort comprises a subset of patients enrolled in the Genomic Advances in Sepsis (GAinS) study, an established biobank of adult sepsis patients. Patients with sepsis due to community acquired pneumonia or faecal peritonitis were recruited from 34 hospitals across the UK from 2005-2018, with samples for functional genomics and detailed clinical information collected on the first, third and/or fifth day following ICU admission. RNA was extracted from leukocytes isolated at the bedside using LeukoLOCK kits. We have previously identified sepsis response signatures (SRSs), transcriptomic endotypes that are associated with differential early mortality (Davenport et al, Lancet Respir Med, 2016; Burnham et al, AJRCCM, 2017) and response to treatment in a clinical trial (Antcliffe et al, AJRCCM, 2018). We generated RNA sequencing data on 903 samples, including 134 samples repeated from our previously released microarray data. Libraries were prepared using NEB Ultra II Library Prep kits (Illumina) and sequenced on a NovaSeq 6000. Reads were aligned to the reference genome (GRCh38) using STAR and gene counts quantified using featureCounts (annotation Ensembl v99). Counts were TMM-normalised and log-transformed. Following QC, processed data were available on 864 samples from 667 unique patients.

  Dataset EGAD00001008730

• WES of adult intellectual disabilities with co-morbid psychiatric disorders (2019-08-07)

  ost adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) do not undergo genetic diagnostic investigation as part of their clinical care and have 'missed the boat' with regard to the WES and WGS genetic testing that is now being provided for children with ID. There is a dramatically increased risk of psychistric disorders in adults with ID, e.g. the risk of psychoses is 10X higher than in the general population. It remains an open question as to how much of adult ID is genetic in origin and how similar the genetic forms of adult ID are to those being diagnosed in children, in part due to survivor bias. There is also the opportunity to identify adults with treatable forms of ID, of which over 80 have been described, thus improving their clinical management. Furthermore, analysis of medical records of adults with genetic forms of ID can help to characterise the 'natural history' of individual disorders, resulting in more accurate prognoses for diagnosed children and identifying opportunities for improved management and possibly therapeutic intervention (e.g. optimal anti-epileptic therapy). Here we propose to exome sequence (to ~50X coverage) 200 adults with ID and co-morbid psychiatric disorders. This cohort has previously been assayed with chromosomal microarrays (Wolfe et al 2017 EJHG, 25, 66-72) identifying a diagnostic yield of ~11% which is comparable to the CNV diagnostic yield in various child ID cohorts (10-15%). The authors observed no substantive biases in diagnostic yield between different psychiatric diagnostic classes. The WES data will be analysed using the diagnostic workflows developed in the DDD study to ensure comparability between child and adult ID datasets. This study is intended as a pilot study to demonstrate the value of WES in adults with ID. This data is part of a pre-publication release. For information on the proper use of pre-publication data shared by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (including details of any publication moratoria), please see http://www.sanger.ac.uk/datasharing/ . This dataset contains all the data available for this study on 2019-08-07.

  Dataset EGAD00001005236

• Single cell genomic variation induced by mutational processes in cancer

  How cell-to-cell copy number alterations that underpin genomic instability in human cancers drive genomic and phenotypic variation, and consequently cancer evolution, remains understudied. Here, applying scaled single cell whole genome sequencing to wildtype, TP53-deficient and TP53/BRCA1/2-deficient mammary epithelial cells (n=13,818 genomes) and primary triple negative breast (TNBC) and high grade serous ovarian cancers (HGSC) (n=22,057 genomes), we identified three distinct ‘foreground’ mutational patterns defined by cell-to-cell copy number and structural variation properties occurring in the ‘background’ of cancer-associated genomic instability. Cell and clone-specific high level amplifications (HLAMPs), parallel allele-specific copy number alterations and copy number segment length variation (serrate structural variations) exhibited measurable phenotypic and evolutionary consequences. Clone-specific HLAMPs in known oncogenes were highly prevalent in fold back inversion (FBI)-bearing tumors and associated with increased clone-to-clone phenotypic variation in gene expression inferred from matched single cell RNASeq. Parallel allele-specific alterations were linked with phylogenetically determined evolutionary diversity and clone-specific mono-allelic expression. Serrate patterns present across all clones were increased in FBI tumors, most prominently on a tetraploid background and were highly correlated with increased genomic diversity of cellular populations. Taken together, we show that cell-to-cell structural-copy number variation significantly impacts the phenotypes and evolutionary diversity of TNBC and HGSC, revealing previously hidden genomic states of cancer cells.

  Study EGAS00001006343

• MPN mutation order followup

  To evaluate the presence of mutations in frequently mutated genes in MPN by performing targeted resequencing of a selected gene panel comprising of 111 genes across 40 samples with MPN.

  Dataset EGAD00001000848

• GBM Up and Down Responder EZH2 ChIPseq

  ChIPseq using anti-EZH2 with a sheared input DNA control to assess EZH2 genomic biding in one longitudinal pair of samples (pre- and post-treatment) from one UP and one DOWN responder GBM patient

  Dataset EGAD50000000134

• Pacbio_methylation_controls

  The PacBio control dataset for differential methylation analysis included 39 control samples without methylation disorders. All samples were sequenced using PacBio Revio® HiFi reads at a matched coverage of 15X, and methylation was called using pb-cpg-tools on aligned BAM files.

  Dataset EGAD00010002806

• Single-cell RNA-sequencing reveals that glioblastoma recapitulates a normal neurodevetlopmental hierarchy

  10xGenomics single-cell RNA sequencing of glioblastoma patient tumor

  Dataset EGAD00001006206

• RNA data for EGAS00001004660

  RNA data for EGAS00001004660, "Aggressive PDACs show hypomethylation of repetitive elements and the execution of an intrinsic IFN program linked to a ductal cell-of-origin"

  Dataset EGAD00001006539

• RNA-seq

  Bulk RNA-seq data of 8 RNA samples were generated. Libraries were prepared using the Stranded mRNA Library Prep, Ligation Kit (Illumina) following manufacturer’s recommendations and sequenced on a NextSeq 2000 (2x50 bp, Illumina).

  Dataset EGAD00001010308

• HV31 - MGI single-tube long fragment read (stLFR) linked-read sequencing

  MGI single-tube long fragment read (stLFR) linked-read sequencing data for individual HV31 generated using DNA from CD14+ monocytes, to a sequencing depth of ~51×.

  Dataset EGAD00001007045

• Paired-end Whole Exome-seq analysis of TERT promoter duplication in GBM

  Dataset contains paired-end Whole Exome sequencing data from 5 tumor samples and 1 single normal blood sample from a single primary GBM patient.

  Dataset EGAD00001008768

• Genomic determination for Homologous Recombination Deficiency (HRD) by shallow Whole Genome Sequencing (sWGS)

  Homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) score in a large cohort of 55 triple-negative breast cancer PDX

  Dataset EGAD00001008839

• WES data from optic atrophy study

  The dataset includes Fastq files from WES experiments performed on a proband presenting with syndromic optic atrophy and his healthy parents. Exons were captured by hybridization and sequenced on an Illumina platform

  Dataset EGAD00001005321

• WGBS data for EGAS00001004660

  WGBS data for EGAS00001004660, "Aggressive PDACs show hypomethylation of repetitive elements and the execution of an intrinsic IFN program linked to a ductal cell-of-origin"

  Dataset EGAD00001006538

• Whole Genome Sequencing of Normal Singaporean Volunteers

  Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) data for 546 Singaporean volunteers used to estimate WGS-LTL in the study. Samples were sequenced using Illumina Hiseq X to a mean coverage of 30X.

  Dataset EGAD00001005480