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• The patterns and dynamics of genomic instability in metastatic pancreatic cancer

  Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive malignancy with a five-year mortality of 97–98%, usually due to widespread metastatic disease. Previous studies indicate that this disease has a complex genomic landscape, with frequent copy number changes and point mutations, but genomic rearrangements have not been characterized in detail. Despite the clinical importance of metastasis, there remain fundamental questions about the clonal structures of metastatic tumours, including phylogenetic relationships among metastases, the scale of ongoing parallel evolution in metastatic and primary sites, and how the tumour disseminates. Here we harness advances in DNA sequencing to annotate genomic rearrangements in 13 patients with pancreatic cancer and explore clonal relationships among metastases. We find that pancreatic cancer acquires rearrangements indicative of telomere dysfunction and abnormal cell-cycle control, namely dysregulated G1-to-S-phase transition with intact G2–M checkpoint. These initiate amplification of cancer genes and occur predominantly in early cancer development rather than the later stages of the disease. Genomic instability frequently persists after cancer dissemination, resulting in ongoing, parallel and even convergent evolution among different metastases. We find evidence that there is genetic heterogeneity among metastasis-initiating cells, that seeding metastasis may require driver mutations beyond those required for primary tumours, and that phylogenetic trees across metastases show organ-specific branches. These data attest to the richness of genetic variation in cancer, brought about by the tandem forces of genomic instability and evolutionary selection.

  Study EGAS00000000064

• Phase II Therapeutic Trial of Mexiletine in Non-Dystrophic Myotonia (IND #77,021)

  Non-dystrophic myotonias are a group of rare muscle disorders caused by abnormalities in different muscle cell membrane proteins. Patients experience delayed muscle relaxation that causes impaired physical activity, stiffness, and pain. Mexiletine has been shown to be beneficial for symptoms of myotonia in case reports of patients with non-dystrophic myotonia, however, current management of these patients primarily depends on individual practitioners' preference. This study is a placebo-controlled, double-blind, cross-over treatment trial using mexiletine in non-dystrophic myotonias. The results, if positive, will permit the identification of mexiletine as an effective therapy for myotonia, making it a first-line therapy for patients with non-dystrophic myotonia. The specific aim of this proposal is to perform a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over study to assess whether mexiletine improves both quantitative and qualitative measures of myotonia in patients with non-dystrophic myotonia. Given the rarity of non-dystrophic myotonia, large randomized controlled treatment trials in these disorders have not been feasible in the past. Primary Outcome Measure: Patient-assessed symptom: stiffness as measured by an Interactive Voice Response Diary (IVR). Secondary Outcome Measures: a) patient-assessed pain, weakness, and fatigue as measured by IVR; b) clinical myotonia assessment; c) quality of life as measured by INQoL, SF36; d) a quantitative measure of grip myotonia; e) measurement of CMAP after short and long exercise; f) grading of myotonia on needle EMG.

  Study phs001311

• Genetics of Disorders Affecting Tooth Structure, Number, Morphology and Eruption

  The long-term objective of this research project is to discover the complete spectrum of genes that contribute to the etiologies of genetic disorders of dentition. Inherited tooth defects can be isolated (the only symptom) or syndromic (having additional symptoms), and can be caused by mutations in many different genes. Clinically, it can be difficult to distinguish among the diverse forms. Making an accurate diagnosis would be greatly improved if reliable tests could identify the specific genetic defect that causes the disease in each case. Current technology can identify the numerous sequence variations throughout a patient's exome, but the disease-causing variation among them cannot be identified unless it is already on the list of genes that potentially cause the disease. A diagnosis based upon the genetic defect that causes the disorder distinguishes between isolated and syndromic tooth defects. A precise diagnosis permits formulation of a more accurate prognosis, which informs treatment decisions. The benefits of accomplishing our aims are to 1) enable genetic testing to achieve a precise and accurate diagnosis, and thereby optimize treatment, and 2) improve our understanding of normal and pathological tooth formation, leading to future improvements in treatment and eventually cures. Our short-term objectives are to 1) recruit kindreds with inherited disorders affecting their dentition, characterize their dental phenotype (and non-dental phenotypes when applicable) and the distribution of the disorder throughout the family, and 2) determine the genetic etiology of their disorders.

  Study phs001491

• National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) Postmortem Prefrontal Cortex eQTL and mQTL Study

  Mapping expression and methylation quantitative trait loci (eQTLs and mQTLs) using genome-wide genotype, transcriptome, and DNA methylome data can provide an unbiased approach to identify novel functional variants. One critical issue of the eQTL/mQTL analysis is that the role of genetic variants in regulating gene expression (or DNA methylation) can be tissue- or cell-specific. To unravel causal variants from disease-associated loci, it would be necessary to map eQTLs and mQTLs in both patients and controls. Those eQTLs and mQTLs in patients are more likely to be causal variants for the disease. Identification of disease- and tissue-specific eQTLs and mQTLs will help disentangle the role of the specific tissue in disease development as well. In the present study, we mapped eQTLs and mQTLs in postmortem prefrontal cortex of patients with alcoholism or alcohol use disorder (AUD) and matched control subjects by integrative analyses of genome-wide SNP genotype, mRNA transcriptome, and DNA methylome data. As AUD is comorbid with schizophrenia (SCZ), bipolar disorder (BIP), major depressive disorder (MDD), and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), we further examined the co-localization of PFC eQTLs/mQTLs and GWAS-identified SNPs (mainly noncoding SNPs) that were associated with AUD as well as comorbid SCZ, BIP, MDD, and ADHD. Our study demonstrated the enrichment of PFC eQTLs/mQTLs in the above psychiatric disorder-associated genetic variants identified by genome-wide association studies (GWAS).

  Study phs001981

• A Phase I/II Study of Revlimid (lenalidomide) in Combination with Vidaza (azacitidine) in Patients with Advanced Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS)

  This single-arm study design has been selected to investigate the safety of combination therapy with Vidaza® (azacitidine) and Revlimid® (lenalidomide) in a population of 18 participants with advanced MDS for the Phase I portion, and 18 participants for the Phase II portion. The multi-center nature of the study should enhance the general applicability of the results. Participants with advanced MDS were chosen because it is expected that the combination of the two drugs will by myelosuppressive, which can be considered a necessary toxicity to effect improvements in PR and CR rates in this advanced population, akin to participants with AML. Finally, the combination was chosen to be studied because currently available therapies in this population, and their effectiveness, are limited, and single-agent Vidaza® (azacitidine), while effective at delaying transformation to AML or death, is not curative. The doses of Revlimid® (lenalidomide) in this study are similar to those that were demonstrated to have an effect and to be well-tolerated in participants with MDS. Doses for Vidaza® (azacitidine) are similar to those used in the pivotal trial, though for a 5-day treatment period instead of 7 to minimize toxicity for the first 3 blocks of participants, and then at a lower dose over a protracted period of time to explore the safety of a 10-day treatment course.

  Study phs001318

• University of Texas PDX Development and Trial Center Grant

  The goal for the University Texas PDX Development and Trial Center (UTPDTC) is to optimize personalized biomarker-based cancer therapy and identify effective targeted drugs based on the molecular characteristics of each tumor. Our short-term goals are to establish a biobank of clinically, and molecularly-annotated Patient-Derived Xenografts (PDXs) and to use PDXs as a platform for preclinical drug development and biomarker discovery. The primary goal for UTPDTC investigators will be to develop PDX trial strategies for preclinical testing of single agents and drug combinations. These models will allow the determination of the optimal treatments (single drugs or combinations) that should be tested in clinical trials in increasingly individualized, molecularly defined subsets of tumors. The goal of the Patient-Derived Xenograft Core is to provide high-quality clinically relevant and molecularly annotated PDX models for the research projects proposed in the University of Texas PDX Development and Trial Center (UTPDTC) grant application and to the research activity of the NCI PDX Development and Trial Centers Research Network (PDXNet) by leveraging PDX resources at our institutions and developing new PDX models from human cancer specimens using rigorous quality standards so that the models can be used to guide clinical trial development. The PDX models developed and/or characterized by the PDX Core will be available to other cancer researchers through the PDXNet and NCI Patient-Derived Models Repository (PDMR).

  Study phs001980

• Whole Genome Sequencing Analysis in a Family of Discordant Twins With Non-Syndromic Microtia and Hemifacial Microsomia: Identification of Novel Candidate Genes and Variants

  This research is a non-NIH effort to discover the pathogenesis of non-syndromic microtia and to detect potential candidate genes. Microtia (OMIM 600674, 612290, 251800) is a spectrum of congenital anomalies and facial abnormalities, 90% of the cases followed by hearing loss. Two types of the disease are described in terms of connection to the affected syndromes: anomalies (syndromic) and only clinical manifestation (non-syndromic) associated with other symptoms. Though the exact pathogenesis of microtia remains unknown, pathogenic genes of majority of the microtia syndromic types have been identified. However, the genetic mutation of the non-syndromic microtia has not been confirmed. In this study, whole genome sequencing (WGS) was utilized to screen mutations in monozygotic discordant twins of congenital microtia-atresia and their family members. One of the twins, along with her grandfather, was discordant for microtia-atresia. By bioinformatic analysis of the WGS data from monozygotic twins with microtia and their non-microtia relatives, we proposed that among 28 identified potential genes, 4 of them (CNOT1, ODAD4, TBX15, and GIPC3) could be more responsible for non-syndromic microtia development and phenotypic features. Interested investigators may request to access the DNA genomic sequencing data of the study participants via dbGaP authorized access. In addition to raw genomic sequencing data, datasets of germline mutations and candidate gene mutations may also be available for investigators to request.

  Study phs003216

• Small Intestine Neuroendocrine Tumors (Carcinoid Tumors)

  The diagnosed incidence of small bowel neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) is increasing. While patients with localized disease can be treated surgically, those with metastatic disease currently have few treatment options. The success of biologically targeted therapies in other malignancies has led to interest in the molecular alterations underlying the pathogenesis of these NETs. To identify genetic aberrations in small intestine NETs, we generated copy number profiles from 31 primary and metastatic tumors and performed whole-exome sequencing on a subset of 29 primary small intestine NETs and 24 metastatic NETs in parallel with normal blood DNA. Whole-genome sequencing data was generated on 15 tumor/normal pairs and 5 primary/metastasis/normal trios. The global genetic landscape of small bowel NETs is relatively quiet. Consistent with previous studies, the overwhelming majority of tumors were characterized by loss of chromosome 18 and, to a lesser extent, other chromosome arm gains and losses. In stark contrast to arm-level alterations, recurrent high-level focal amplifications and deletions were much less prevalent in these tumors. High-throughput mutation screening and exome sequencing revealed similarly low rates of somatic mutation in NETs (median of 0.77 non-silent mutations per megabase (Mb) of coding DNA) compared to other recent cancer exome sequencing efforts. Our analysis of this cohort identified only a single, statistically significant recurrent somatic mutation targeting the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor gene, CDKN1B, encoding p27.

  Study phs000579

• The Genetics of Type 2 Diabetes Consortium (GoT2D): Low-Pass Sequencing and High-Density SNP Genotyping for Type 2 Diabetes

  The Genetics of Type 2 Diabetes Consortium (GoT2D) is a collaboration between the University of Michigan, the Broad Institute and the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics. The overall aim is to extend upon recent efforts, such as genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and large scale meta-analyses. While they have proved successful at mapping genomic loci that influence human diseases, like type 2 diabetes, much of the heritability remains unexplained. In this study, we use next generation sequencing and genotyping technologies to query for lower frequency variants in the human genome. Thereby, allowing a deeper characterization of the spectrum of alleles associated with type 2 diabetes risk, and a better assessment of the genes that play a role in the etiology of type 2 diabetes development. We studied 1,326 T2D cases and 1,331 normoglycemic controls from Northern and Central Europe (Sweden, Finland, UK, and Germany). To efficiently characterize the entire genome sequence of each individual, we performed low-coverage (~5x) whole-genome sequencing, augmented by deep coverage (~100x) sequencing of the exome (Fuchsberger et al, 2016), and dense (2.5M) single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping using the HumanOmni2.5 array. The data deposited in dbGaP will include all the Swedish, Finnish, and UK samples, but the German data will be deposited in the European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA), by virtue of the project specific funding requirements.

  Study phs000840

• Use of Whole Genome Sequencing for Diagnosis and Discovery in the Cancer Genetics Clinic

  Despite the potential of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) to improve patient diagnosis and care, the empirical value of WGS in the cancer genetics clinic is unknown. We performed WGS on members of two cohorts of cancer genetics patients: those with BRCA1/2 mutations (n = 176) and those without (n = 82). Initial analysis of potentially pathogenic variants (PPVs, defined as nonsynonymous variants with allele frequency < 1% in ESP6500) in 163 clinically-relevant genes suggested that WGS will provide useful clinical results. This is despite the fact that a majority of PPVs were novel missense variants likely to be classified as variants of unknown significance (VUS). Furthermore, previously reported pathogenic missense variants did not always associate with their predicted diseases in our patients. This suggests that the clinical use of WGS will require large-scale efforts to consolidate WGS and patient data to improve accuracy of interpretation of rare variants. While loss-of-function (LoF) variants represented only a small fraction of PPVs, WGS identified additional cancer risk LoF PPVs in patients with known BRCA1/2 mutations and led to cancer risk diagnoses in 21% of non-BRCA cancer genetics patients after expanding our analysis to 3209 ClinVar genes. These data illustrate how WGS can be used to improve our ability to discover patients' cancer genetic risks. "Reprinted from doi:10.1016/j.ebiom.2014.12.003, with permission from EBioMedicine."

  Study phs000942

• Uncovering Inversion Formation in the Human Genome and its Impact to Disease

  The relevance of inversions for disease causation, speciation and adaptation is broadly recognized, although the prevalence of inversions is unknown. In humans, de novo inversions are associated with congenital anomalies in approximately 9.6% of patients. Yet, despite the biological relevance of inversions, their molecular features, formation mechanism, impact to the genomic structure of carriers, as well as their contribution to clinical phenotypes, have not been further explored. Inversions are typically classified as balanced reciprocal events generated by ectopic recombination, although recent studies reveal a distinct picture whereby inversions originate from mechanisms that concomitantly generate copy number variants (CNVs). Surprisingly, those complex inversions underlie as much as 30% of neurodevelopmental-associated CNVs. The hypothesis of this project are: inversions are often generated de novo by mechanisms other than ectopic recombination a relevant fraction of inversions are associated with complex genomic rearrangements (CGRs), often overlooked in sporadic diseases, and inversions are a "hidden" type of structural variation for which contribution to a clinical phenotypes has been under assessed due to the lack of appropriate detection tools. A combined strategy using multiple genomic tools will be applied to characterize inversions and associated genomic alterations in individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders and controls: whole genome sequencing (WGS) with short-and long-reads; genome mapping; classical cytogenetics; and array CGH. This project will establish common ground to bridge studies of rare and common diseases, human evolution, and population genetics.

  Study phs002999

• Genomic and Phenotypic Profile of Sickle Cell Disease in Human Population in Cameroon

  Sickle cell disease (SCD) is caused by a biallelic single nucleotide substitution in the beta-globin gene (HBB), resulting in an amino acid substitution, Glu7Val, formerly known as Glu6Val. An estimated 300,000 babies with SCD are born worldwide each year, with nearly 75% of these births being in sub-Saharan Africa. In Africa, at least 30-50% of children with untreated SCD die before the age of 5 years. Therefore, accelerating the path for novel therapies for SCD through genomics research on fetal hemoglobin (HbF) is critical. Variants in the currently known HbF‐modulating genes/loci, i.e., BCL11A, HBS1L-MYB, and XmnI-HBG2, explain only 10-20% of the variation of HbF levels in African individuals with SCD, compared with nearly 50% of the variation in HbF levels among Europeans. Expanding genomic research in populations of African ancestry could uncover the missing heritability of HbF-promoting loci. This study used the Human Heredity and Health (H3Africa) consortium SNP genotyping array developed from whole genome enriched for common variants in sub-Saharan Africans to investigate genomic variations associated with HbF levels in individuals with sickle cell anemia of the HbSS genotype from Cameroon. Two of the previously described loci, BCL11A and HBS1L-MYB were replicated, while a novel locus on chromosome 13 mapping to FLT1 was uncovered. The study therefore opens up a novel avenue for exploring SCD gene therapy.

  Study phs003748

• Biopsy-Derived Organoids in Personalised Early Breast Cancer Care: Challenges of Tumour Purity and Normal Cell Overgrowth Cap Their Practical Utility

  The ability to establish organoids composed exclusively of tumour rather than healthy cells is essential for their implementation into clinical practice. Organoids have in recent years emerged as a powerful tool to expand patient material in culture and generate modifiable 3D models derived from humans or animal models. For translational research, they enable the creation of model systems for an ever-increasing number of cell types and diseases. And in personalised medicine, they potentially allow for functional drug testing with high predictive power in certain settings. We found that using biopsy material from untreated, early-stage primary breast cancer patients poses significant challenges for consistently culturing tumour cells as organoids. Specifically, we observed frequent outgrowth of genetically normal, non-cancerous epithelial cells. We analysed >100 biopsy samples from early-stage breast cancer and present our large collection of >70 organoid lines. We also show methods of assessing successful tumour cell culture in a time and cost-efficient manner, proving a high rate (>85%) of normal cell overgrowth in early-stage breast cancer organoids. Finally, we show a number of successful attempts to culture cancer organoids from mastectomy-derived tissue of advanced, metastatic breast cancer. We conclude that the usefulness of organoids from early breast cancer for translational research and personalised medicine, especially guidance of adjuvant or post-surgical maintenance therapy, is strongly limited by the low success rate of culturing cancerous cells under organoid conditions.

  Study EGAS50000000605

• Multi-omics bulk and single-cell profiling of epithelioid sarcoma

  Epithelioid sarcoma (EpS) is an aggressive sarcoma, characterized by the loss of SMARCB1 expression. EpS is traditionally classified as distal or proximal according to clinicopathological features, but its molecular characteristics remain largely unknown. To establish an EpS molecular classification and uncover determinants of inter- and intra-patient heterogeneity in EpS, we used multi-omics profiling and integrated the genomic, transcriptional and methylome landscapes with single-cell RNA sequencing on fresh samples as well as spatial transcriptomics. We identified two molecular subtypes of EpS: “distal-like” and “proximal-like”, which were distinct from the histological subtypes. Distal-like tumors include all morphological distal subtypes and a subset of proximal and hybrid EpS. They express a specific molecular single-cell derived epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition signature, which associates with improved patient survival and includes Desmoglein 2 (DSG2), which we identify as a potential routine immunohistochemical biomarker to improve diagnosis. Distal-like EpS also display increased peri-tumoral CD8+ T cell infiltrates and specific tumor-immune cell interactions. Conversely, proximal-like EpS harbor a higher inter-tumoral molecular heterogeneity with some cases resembling other SMARCB1-deficient tumors by DNA methylation profiling, and increased intra-tumoral pro-tumoral macrophage infiltrates. Our study introduces a novel molecular classification of EpS with prognostic value, associated diagnostic biomarkers and distinct tumor immune microenvironments, which extends beyond traditional clinicopathological classification. This paves the way for precision medicine-based therapeutic strategies for patients with EpS.

  Study EGAS50000000973

• Collagen XVII Promotes Pancreatic Cancer Through Regulation of PIK3R5

  Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) contains a desmoplastic stroma that promotes the aggressive biology of this disease. While the varied mechanisms by which fibrillar collagens contribute to PDAC have been defined, little is known about the contribution of transmembrane collagens. Among this class of collagens, Collagen XVII uniquely contains an extensive intracellular domain that connects intracellular cytoplasmic components with the extracellular matrix. Collagen XVII is best characterized as the defining component of the type I hemidesmosome, an anchoring complex that attaches epithelial cells to the underlying basement membrane. In this study, we characterize the expression of collagen XVII in PDAC and the mechanisms by which it contributes to PDAC biology. We demonstrate that crosstalk between PDAC cells and cancer associated fibroblasts drive collagen XVII expression in vitro and xenograft tumor models in vivo. Genetic depletion of collagen XVII in low-passage patient derived cell lines diminishes their metastatic potential and ability to form tumors in mice. Whole transcriptome sequencing of tumors formed by cells with diminished collagen XVII levels revealed dramatically lower levels of PIK3R5, a regulatory subunit of class IB phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) that interacts with G protein-coupled receptors. Consistent with this, collagen XVII-deficient tumors exhibited lower levels of phosphorylated AKT, a downstream effector of PI3K. The studies highlight the importance of collagen XVII signaling in PDAC and define a novel mechanism by which collagen XVII mediates activation of PI3K.

  Study phs003641

• Field studies of Cryptosporidiosis and Enteropathogens in Bangladesh

  Cryptosporidiosis causes severe diarrhea in infants in the developing world. There is no vaccine to prevent it, and little in the way of treatment. This study on Bangladeshi urban slum children aims to support the design of a vaccine, both by determining how the immune system protects from infection and by identifying the genotypes of the parasite that should be included in a vaccine, as well as aid in development of therapies by identifying human genes that control infection. The primary objective of the study was to determine the incidence and contribution to disease of the different species and genotypes of cryptosporidia. Secondary objectives were designed to determine acquired immune response to cryptosporidiosis and identify human genes that influence susceptibility to cryptosporidiosis. This is an observational study. Children were recruited from Mirpur Dhaka slum (Cohort 1) and rural Mirzapur (Cohort 2) and followed for cryptosporidium infection longitudinally from birth through age 4 years in Cohort 1 and birth through age 2 years in Cohort 2. Biweekly household visits for diarrheal surveillance were made in addition to anthropometric measurements of mother and child, blood samples collected two times each year from the child, a work-up of diarrheal stools and non-diarrheal surveillance stools for cryptosporidium and other enteropathogens, and blood and breast milk samples from the mother. A detailed description of the study design and procedures can be obtained from publication: Kevin L Steiner, et al., 2018, PMID: 29897482.

  Study phs001665

• RNA Transcriptomic and DNA Methylation Landscape in FTLD-TDP and Controls

  Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is one of the leading causes of dementia in individuals younger than 65 years, with the aggregation of TDP-43 as one of the most common forms of FTLD. FTLD-TDP is clinically, genetically and pathologically heterogeneous, with GRN and C9orf72 as the most common genetic forms (although more than 50% of the cases are genetically unexplained), and A, B and C as the most common pathological subtypes. To investigate the molecular differences between the different forms of FTLD-TDP, we performed bulk RNA sequencing (RNAseq) and reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS) from different brain regions of FTLD-TDP patients and controls. The RNAseq dataset includes samples from the frontal cortex of 149 individuals, comprising 127 FTLD-TDP cases (genetically unexplained types A (27), B (20) and C (22), 24 GRN mutation carriers, and 34 C9orf72 expansion carriers) and 22 controls. The RRBS dataset includes samples from the frontal cortex of 158 individuals —119 FTLD-TDP cases (genetically unexplained types A (25), B (24), and C (25), 20 GRN mutation carriers, and 25 C9orf72 expansion carriers) and 39 controls; and from the cerebellum of 151 individuals —113 FTLD-TDP cases (genetically unexplained types A (24), B (21), and C (23), 20 GRN mutation carriers, and 25 C9orf72 expansion carriers) and 38 controls. In total, the study consists of data from 183 unique individuals, with some overlap across the different datasets.

  Study phs004075

• Gut metagenome associations with extensive digital health data in a volunteer-based EstMB cohort second timepoint data

  As part of the Estonian Biobank, we established the Estonian Microbiome Cohort which includes stool, oral and plasma samples from 2,509 participants and is supplemented with multi-omic measurements, questionnaires, and regular linkages to national electronic health records. Out of the 2,509 Estonian Microbiome Project participants, a sub-cohort of over 300 individuals provided an additional stool sample after a median follow-up period of 4.4 years. All participants of the EstMB cohort gave informed consent for the data and samples to be used for scientific purposes. In the second time point, the participants were instructed to send the samples by post immediately after taking the sample and time their sample collection to avoid shipping on the weekends. In the study, by utilising retrospective medication usage data from the electronic health records and the Estonian microbiome cohort shotgun metagenomics data set (n = 2,509), we systematically evaluate the long-term effects of antibiotics and human-targeted medications on the gut microbiome. We show that past usage of medications is associated with the gut microbiome. For example, the effects of antibiotics, psycholeptics, antidepressants, proton pump inhibitors, and beta-blockers are detectable several years after use. Furthermore, by analysing a subcohort (n >300 individuals) from the second time point, we show that similar changes in the gut microbiome occur after treatment initiation or discontinuation, possibly indicating causal effects.

  Study EGAS50000001181

• Genetic alterations that deregulate RB and PDGFRA signaling pathways drive tumor progression in IDH2-mutant astrocytoma

  In IDH-mutant astrocytomas, IDH2 mutation is quite rare and biological mechanisms underlying tumor progression in IDH2-mutant astrocytoma remain elusive. Here, we report a unique case of IDH2 mutant astrocytoma, CNS WHO grade 3 that developed tumor progression. We performed a comprehensive genomic and epigenomic analysis for primary and recurrent tumors and found that both tumors harbored recurrent IDH2R172K and TP53R248W mutation with CDKN2A/B hemizygous deletion. We also found amplifications of CDK4 and MDM2 with PDGFRA gain in the recurrent tumor and upregulated protein expressions of these genes. We further developed, for the first time, a xenograft mouse model of IDH2R172K mutant astrocytoma from the recurrent tumor, but not from the primary tumor. Consistent with parent recurrent tumor cells, amplifications of CDK4 and MDM2 with PDGFRA gain was found, while CDKN2A/B was identified as homozygous deletion in the xenografts, qualifying for integrated diagnosis of astrocytoma, IDH2-mutant, CNS WHO grade 4. Cell viability assay found that CDK4/6 inhibitor and PDGFR inhibitor potently decreased cell viability in recurrent tumor cells, as compared to primary tumor cells. These findings suggest that gene alterations that activate retinoblastoma (RB) signaling pathways and PDGFR may drive tumor progression and xenograft formation in IDH2-mutant astrocytoma, which is equivalent to progressive IDH1-mutant astrocytoma. Also, our findings suggest that these genomic alterations may represent therapeutic targets in IDH2-mutant astrocytoma.

  Study JGAS000646

• Comprehensive molecular and clinicopathological profiling of lung adenocarcinoma in Japanese never or light smokers

  Studies have yet to characterize the differences in molecular profiles of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) among divergent ethnic groups. Herein, we conducted comprehensive molecular profiling of LUAD in never or light smokers from Asia in order to discover novel targetable mutations and prognostic biomarkers of this distinct disease entity. Methods: We analyzed 996 cases of Asian LUAD, and performed whole-exome sequencing and/or RNA-seq in 125 cases of Asian LUAD negative for the driver oncogenes defined by conventional laboratory testing. We also investigated the clinical and pathological characteristics among the 996 cases. Results: Driver oncogenes were identified in 88 cases (70.4%) with specific hotspot mutations differing from those in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) study. Clustering based on mRNA expression profiles, but not genetic mutational ones, could predict patient prognosis. The risk score generated by the expression of a three-gene set was a strong prognostic marker for overall survival and progression-free survival in our cohort, and was further validated using TCGA cohort. Among the 996 cases, each driver alteration is distributed across all histological subtypes. Adenocarcinoma in situ was identified to harbor driver mutations, suggesting that these alterations are early events in the pathogenesis of LUAD. This study indicates the value of applying gene expression profiling for predicting the prognosis after a surgical operation, and that the identification of actionable mutations is important for optimizing targeted drugs in Japanese LUAD.

  Study JGAS000215

• DNA methylation at HBV integrants and flanking host genomes

  Integration of DNA viruses into the human genome plays an important role in various types of tumors, including hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma. However, the molecular details and clinical impact of HBV integration on either the human or HBV epigenomes are unknown. Here, we show that methylation of the integrated HBV DNA is related to the methylation status of the flanking human genome. We developed a next-generation sequencing-based method for structural methylation analysis of integrated viral genomes (denoted G-NaVI). This method is a novel approach that enables enrichment of viral fragments for sequencing using unique baits based on the sequence of the HBV genome. We detected integrated HBV sequences in the genome of the PLC/PRF/5 cell line and found variable levels of methylation within the integrated HBV genomes. Allele-specific methylation analysis revealed that the HBV genome often became significantly methylated when integrated into highly methylated host sites. After integration into unmethylated human genome regions such as promoters, however, the HBV DNA remains unmethylated and may eventually play an important role in tumorigenesis. The observed dynamic changes in DNA methylation of the host and viral genomes may functionally affect the biological behavior of HBV. These findings may impact public health given that millions of people worldwide are carriers of HBV. We also believe our assay will be a powerful tool to increase our understanding of the various types of DNA virus-associated tumorigenesis.

  Study JGAS000015

• Relapse CHL study

  Classical Hodgkin Lymphoma (CHL) is characterized by a complex tumor microenvironment (TME) that supports disease progression. While immune cell recruitment by Hodgkin and Reed–Sternberg (HRS) cells is well-documented, the role of non-malignant B cells in relapse remains unclear. Using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) on paired diagnostic and relapsed CHL samples, we identified distinct shifts in B cell populations, particularly an enrichment of naïve B cells and a reduction of memory B cells in early-relapse compared to late-relapse and newly diagnosed CHL. The enrichment of naïve B cells in early relapse biopsies was confirmed in independent validation cohorts using scRNA-seq and immunohistochemistry. Notably, naïve B cells in early-relapse samples exhibited high expression of LGALS9, an immunosuppressive molecule known to interact with T cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 3 (TIM-3) on regulatory T cells (Tregs). Cell-cell interaction analysis revealed the importance of interactions between LGALS9+ naïve B cells and TIM-3+ Tregs in the early-relapse setting. Spatial analysis by imaging mass cytometry confirmed close proximity of LGALS9+ naïve B cells with TIM-3⁺ CD4⁺ T cells and HRS cells, pointing to their role in shaping an immunosuppressive niche. Our findings highlight a previously unrecognized population of LGALS9⁺ naïve B cells with immunoregulatory potential in early-relapse CHL and provide new insights into the spatial and transcriptional architecture of the relapsed TME in CHL.

  Study EGAS00001008222

• Noninvasive prenatal molecular karyotyping from maternal plasma

  Fetal DNA is present in the plasma of pregnant women. Massively parallel sequencing of maternal plasma DNA has been used to detect fetal trisomies 21, 18, 13 and selected sex chromosomal aneuploidies noninvasively. Case reports describing the detection of fetal microdeletions from maternal plasma using massively parallel sequencing have been reported. However, these previous reports were either polymorphism-dependent or used statistical analyses which were confined to one or a small number of selected parts of the genome. In this report, we reported a procedure for performing noninvasive prenatal karyotyping at 3 Mb resolution across the whole genome through the massively parallel sequencing of maternal plasma DNA. This method has been used to analyze the plasma obtained from 6 cases. In 5 cases, fetal microduplications or microdeletions have been detected successfully from maternal plasma. The two cases with fetal microduplications represented the first noninvasive prenatal detection of such changes from maternal plasma. In the remaining case, the plasma DNA sequencing result was consistent with the pregnant mother being a carrier of a microduplication. Simulation analyses were performed for determining the number of plasma DNA molecules that would need to be sequenced and aligned for enhancing the diagnostic resolution of noninvasive prenatal karyotyping to 2 Mb and 1 Mb. In conclusion, noninvasive prenatal molecular karyotyping from maternal plasma by massively parallel sequencing is feasible and would enhance the diagnostic spectrum of noninvasive prenatal testing.

  Study EGAS00001000439

• RB1 Gene Inactivation by Chromothripsis in Human Retinoblastoma

  Retinoblastoma is a rare childhood cancer of the developing retina. Most retinoblastomas initiate with biallelic inactivation of the RB1 gene through diverse mechanisms including point mutations, nucleotide insertions, deletions, loss of heterozygosity and promoter hypermethylation. Recently, a novel mechanism of retinoblastoma initiation was proposed. Gallie and colleagues discovered that a small proportion of retinoblastomas lack RB1 mutations and had MYCN amplification [1]. In this study, we identified recurrent chromosomal, regional and focal genomic lesions in 94 primary retinoblastomas with their matched normal DNA using SNP 6.0 chips. We also analyzed the RB1 gene mutations and compared the mechanism of RB1 inactivation to the recurrent copy number variations in the retinoblastoma genome. In addition to the previously described focal amplification of MYCN and deletions in RB1 and BCOR, we also identified recurrent focal amplification of OTX2, a transcription factor required for retinal photoreceptor development. We identified 10 retinoblastomas in our cohort that lacked RB1 point mutations or indels. We performed whole genome sequencing on those 10 tumors and their corresponding germline DNA. In one of the tumors, the RB1 gene was unaltered, the MYCN gene was amplified and RB1 protein was expressed in the nuclei of the tumor cells. In addition, several tumors had complex patterns of structural variations and we identified 3 tumors with chromothripsis at the RB1 locus. This is the first report of chromothripsis as a mechanism for RB1 gene inactivation in cancer.

  Study EGAS00001000598

• Transcriptomic profiles of chronic lymphocytic leukemia before and after frontline therapy: 5-year results from the randomized CLL14 study

  CLL14 (NCT02242942) is a multinational, open-label Phase III study designed to compare venetoclax-obinutuzumab (Ven-Obi) versus chlorambucil-obinutuzumab (Clb-Obi) in previously untreated patients with CLL and co-existing conditions. Between Aug 7, 2015, and Aug 4, 2016, 432 patients were enrolled and randomly assigned to receive either venetoclax plus obinutuzumab (Ven-Obi, n=216) or chlorambucil plus obinutuzumab (Clb-Obi, n=216). In both study arms, patients received fixed-duration treatment of overall 12 cycles, each cycle 28 days long, and entered subsequent post-treatment surveillance. Peripheral blood samples were collected before the start of therapy, as well as every 3-6 months during and after therapy, including at the time of disease progression. The primary endpoint of the study was progression-free survival, secondary endpoints included overall response rate, minimal residual disease response, and overall survival. The primary read-out was conducted after a median follow-up of 28.1 months, when the primary endpoint was met with 30 primary end-point events (disease progression or death) in the Ven-Obi arm and 77 in the Clb-Obi arm (hazard ratio, 0.35; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.23 to 0.53;P<0.001). Follow-up is ongoing until 9 years after the last patient enrollment. In an exploratory analysis, bulk RNAseq was conducted with CD19-enriched blood from patients before start of therapy (418 patients) and at first relapse (44 patients).

  Study EGAS00001006596

• Bioinformatic Methods and Bridging of Assay Results for Reliable Tumor Mutational Burden Assessment in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

  Tumor mutational burden (TMB) has emerged as a predictive biomarker of response to immune checkpoint inhibitors. Standardization of TMB measurement is essential for implementing diagnostic tools to guide treatment. Here we evaluate bioinformatic TMB analysis by whole exome sequencing (WES) in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded samples. In CheckMate 026, TMB was retrospectively assessed in 312 patients with non-small cell lung cancer (58% of the intent-to-treat population) who received first-line nivolumab treatment or chemotherapy. We examined the sensitivity of TMB assessment to bioinformatic filtering methods and assessed concordance between TMB data derived by WES and the FoundationOne CDx™ assay. TMB scores comprising synonymous, indel, frameshift, and nonsense mutations (all mutations) were 3.1-fold higher than data including missense mutations only, but values were highly correlated (Spearman’s r = 0.99). Scores from CheckMate 026 samples including missense mutations only were similar to those generated from data in The Cancer Genome Atlas, but those including all mutations were generally higher. Using databases for germline subtraction (instead of matched controls) showed a trend for race-dependent increases in TMB scores. Parameter variation can therefore impact TMB calculations, highlighting the need for standardization. Encouragingly, WES and FoundationOne CDx outputs were highly correlated (Spearman’s r = 0.90) and differences could be accounted for by empirical calibration, suggesting that reliable TMB assessment across assays, platforms and centers is achievable.

  Study EGAS00001003661

• Identification_of_synthetic_lethal_genes_by_CRISPR_Cas9_library

  Sequencing is performed on PCR products from the amplification of gRNA segments introduced into cell lines (some are commercial, some are derived by collaborators, as described in HMDMC 13/076). Cellular DNA or RNA are not sequenced. This data is defined as "Other Biological/Biochemical Assay Data" under the WTSI datasharing guidelines and consequently will be released at the time of publication and/or through faculty websites. SEQUENCING DETAILS: in October 2016 3 DNA samples will be submitted for PCR amplification and purification through CGP pipeline using Thompson's custom primer set and PCR settings and sequencing with Hiseq using a custom protocol (with 3 forward reads to read sgRNA1, sgRNA2 and the index, optimized with Illumina Bespoke Sanger team); read length 50bp. The following set of samples will be submitted in later 2016 and ealry 2017 as cell pellet to be processed through CGP Cas9 pipeline (Thompson's oligos and protocols) and sequences on Hiseq (same custom sequencing protocol described above) We are utilizing a custom CRISPR/Cas9 library to identify synthetic lethal gene pairs. Cells will be transduced with LV expressing Cas9, then infected with LV expressign the library of 42'000 sgRNA pairs. Cell pellet will be collected from the cell population at different timepoints. The samples will be processed by CGP pipeline customized for the specific protocol and then sequenced to identify the 19bp of the sgRNA and quantify their representation.

  Study EGAS00001002117

• Genome-wide analysis of genetic risk factors for rheumatic heart disease in Aboriginal Australians provides support for pathogenic molecular mimicry

  Background. Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) following Group A Streptococcus (GAS) infections is heritable and prevalent in Indigenous populations. Molecular mimicry between human and GAS proteins triggers pro-inflammatory cardiac valve-reactive T-cells. Methods. Genome-wide genetic analysis was undertaken in 1263 Aboriginal Australians (398 RHD cases; 865 controls). Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped using Illumina HumanCoreExome BeadChips. Direct typing and imputation was used to fine-map the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) region. Epitope binding affinities were mapped for human cross-reactive GAS proteins, including M5 and M6. Results. The strongest genetic association was intronic to HLA-DQA1 (rs9272622; P=1.86x10-7). Conditional analyses showed rs9272622 and/or DQA1*AA16 account for the HLA signal. HLA-DQA1*0101_DQB1*0503 (OR 1.44, 95%CI 1.09-1.90, P=9.56x10-3) and HLA-DQA1*0103_DQB1*0601 (OR 1.27, 95%CI 1.07-1.52, P=7.15x10-3) were risk haplotypes; HLA_DQA1*0301-DQB1*0402 (OR 0.30, 95%CI 0.14-0.65, P=2.36x10-3) was protective. Human myosin cross-reactive N-terminal and B repeat epitopes of GAS M5/M6 bind with higher affinity to DQA1/DQB1 alpha/beta dimers for the two risk haplotypes than the protective haplotype. Conclusions. Variation at HLA_DQA1-DQB1 is the major genetic risk factor for RHD in Aboriginal Australians studied here. Cross-reactive epitopes bind with higher affinity to alpha/beta dimers formed by risk haplotypes, supporting molecular mimicry as the key mechanism of RHD pathogenesis.

  Study EGAS00001002678

• H3.3G34R/V-transformed interneuron progenitors co-opt PDGFRA for gliomagenesis

  Histone H3.3 glycine 34 to arginine/valine (H3.3G34R/V) mutations occur in deadly hemispheric high-grade gliomas. These tumors show exquisite regional and temporal specificity, suggesting a developmental context permissive to the effects of G34R/V mutations. Here we present the molecular landscape of G34R/V gliomas (n=85) and show that 50% bear activating mutations in PDGFRA, with strong selection pressure for PDGFRAMUT clones at recurrence. We show that G34R/V tumors arise in interneuron progenitors of the foetal ventral forebrain expressing GSX2 and the DLX family of homeobox transcription factors, where terminal neuronal differentiation is impaired through aberrant G34R/V-mediated H3K27me3. Frequent co-occurrence of G34R/V & PDGFRAMUT is facilitated in this interneuron lineage-of-origin as PDGFRA forms an aberrant chromatin loop with the adjacent GSX2, hijacking its active chromatin conformation. At the single-cell level, G34R/V tumours entirely lack oligodendroglial transcriptional programs prominent in other glioma entities, and instead harbour dual neuronal and astroglial compartments. CRISPR-removal of H3.3G34R/V does not impact tumorigenicity suggesting this mutation becomes dispensable, while PDGFRAMUT are potently oncogenic regardless of G34 mutation. Collectively, our results suggest that G34R/V gliomas arise in foetal interneuron progenitors unable to undergo terminal differentiation, enabling co-option of PDGFRA through inappropriate expression and activating mutations to promote gliogenesis and oncogenicity. Reliance on PDGFRA for oncogenesis may be of therapeutic opportunity in G34R/V glioma.

  Study EGAS00001004301

• The spatio-temporal evolution of lymph node spread in early breast cancer

  Purpose: The most significant prognostic factor in early breast cancer is lymph node involvement. This stage between localised and systemic disease is key to understanding breast cancer progression, however our knowledge of the evolution of lymph node malignant invasion remains limited, as most currently available data derive from primary tumours. Experimental design: In 11 treatment-naïve node positive early breast cancer patients without clinical evidence of distant metastasis, we investigated lymph node evolution using spatial multi-region sequencing (n=78 samples) of primary and lymph node deposits and genomic profiling of matched longitudinal circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA). Results: Linear evolution from primary to lymph node was rare (1/11) whereas the majority of cases displayed either early divergence between primary and nodes (4/11), or no detectable divergence (6/11) where both primary and nodal cells belonged to a single recent expansion of a metastatic clone. Divergence of metastatic subclones was driven in part by APOBEC. Longitudinal ctDNA samples from 2 subjects taken peri-operatively reflected the two major evolutionary patterns and demonstrate that private mutations can be detected even from early metastatic nodal deposits. Moreover, node removal resulted in disappearance of private lymph node mutations in ctDNA.Conclusions: This study sheds new light on a crucial evolutionary step in the natural history of breast cancer, demonstrating early establishment of axillary lymph node metastasis in a substantial proportion of patients.

  Study EGAS00001002947

• ICU_transcriptomics__Assessing_the_role_of_the_host_immune_response_in_patients_with_ventilator_associated_pneumonia

  The aim of the proposed project is to provide transcriptomic sequencing data analysis of cells isolated from bronchioalveolar lavage and blood samples from critically ill patients with pneumonia on an intensive care unit in order to investigate the host contribution to disease. The lung microbiome of these patients will be analysed in parallel by deep sequencing and 16S sequencing. These data will provide important information to the development of strategies aimed at improving patient outcomes, reducing the development of antimicrobial resistance and facilitating infection control measures in hospital. Specifically, the proposed work will be a proof of principle study of 100 patients. We will use transcriptomic data to define the host contribution to the symptoms of these critically ill patients diagnosed with pneumonia. The data will be correlated with cytokine/chemokine concentrations, routine microbiology analysis and pathogen genomic data from the same samples to determine the ecology of the lungs of these patients. We will look for associations between clinical features, host response and pathogen genomics in order to identify new diagnostic markers. This study should provide important information to improve the speed and accuracy of diagnosis - resulting in more targeted and successful treatment of critically ill patients in the ICU. 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 EGAS00001003074

• Exploiting evolutionary steering in cancer therapy

  Drug resistance, mediated by intra-tumour heterogeneity and clonal evolution, is arguably the biggest problem in cancer therapy today. However, evolving resistance to one drug may come at the cost of increased sensitivity to another due to so-called evolutionary trade-offs. This weakness can be exploited in the clinic using an approach called ‘evolutionary herding’ that aims at controlling the tumour cell population to delay or prevent resistance. However, model systems able to recapitulate cancer evolution experimentally are lacking and current in vitro techniques based on small populations, re-plating and escalating dose, are unsuitable to develop evolutionary herding strategies. We present a novel methodology for evolutionary herding in vitro and ex vivo using patient-derived organoids. Our approach is based on a combination of single-cell barcoding, very large populations of 108-109 cells grown without re-plating, realistic high drug doses, time-course monitoring of cancer clones, and mathematical modelling of tumour evolutionary dynamics. We demonstrate evolutionary herding in non-small cell lung cancer in vitro and in patient-derived colorectal cancer organoids (PDO). We show that herding causes controlled evolutionary bottlenecks that lead to collateral sensitivity. Through genomic analysis, we were also able to determine the mechanisms that drive such sensitivity. Our approach allows modelling evolutionary trade-offs experimentally to test patient-specific evolutionary herding strategies that can be translated into the clinic to control treatment resistance.

  Study EGAS00001003200

• Efficacy of JAK/STAT pathway inhibition in murine xenograft models of early T-cell precursor (ETP) acute lymphoblastic leukemia

  Early T-cell precursor (ETP) acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a recently described subtype of T-ALL characterized by a unique immunophenotype and genomic profile as well as a high rate of induction failure. Frequent mutations in cytokine receptor and JAK/STAT signaling pathways led us to hypothesize that ETP-ALL is dependent on JAK/STAT signaling. Here we demonstrate aberrant activation of the JAK/STAT pathway in ETP-ALL blasts relative to non-ETP T-ALL. Moreover, ETP-ALL showed hyperactivation of STAT5 in response to IL7, an effect that was abrogated by the JAK1/2 inhibitor ruxolitinib. In vivo, ruxolitinib displayed activity in 6/6 patient-derived murine xenograft models of ETP-ALL, with profound single-agent efficacy in 5 models. Ruxolitinib treatment decreased peripheral blast counts relative to pre-treatment levels and compared to control (P<0.01) in 5/6 ETP-ALL xenografts, with marked reduction in mean splenic blast counts (P<0.01) in 6/6 samples. Surprisingly, both JAK/STAT pathway activation and ruxolitinib efficacy were independent of the presence of JAK/STAT pathway mutations, raising the possibility that the therapeutic potential of ruxolitinib in ETP-ALL extends beyond those cases with JAK mutations. These findings establish the preclinical in vivo efficacy of ruxolitinib in ETP-ALL, a biologically distinct subtype for which novel therapies are needed.

  Study EGAS00001001146

• RRBS sequencing of 7 tumour regions and a normal sample from a single TRACERx patient.

  Background: Epigenetic heterogeneity within a tumour can play an important role in tumour evolution and the emergence of resistance to treatment. It is increasingly recognised that the study of DNA methylation (DNAm) patterns along the genome - so-called `epialleles' - offers greater insight into epigenetic dynamics than conventional analyses which examine DNAm marks individually. Results: We have developed a Bayesian model to infer which epialleles are present in multiple regions of the same tumour. We apply our method to reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS) data from multiple regions of one lung cancer tumour and a matched normal sample. The model borrows information from all tumour regions to leverage greater statistical power. The total number of epialleles, the epiallele DNAm patterns, and a noise hyperparameter are all automatically inferred from the data. Uncertainty as to which epiallele an observed sequencing read originated from is explicitly incorporated by marginalising over the appropriate posterior densities. The degree to which tumour samples are contaminated with normal tissue can be estimated and corrected for. By tracing the distribution of epialleles throughout the tumour we can infer the phylogenetic history of the tumour, identify epialleles that differ between normal and cancer tissue, and define a measure of global epigenetic disorder. Conclusions: Detection and comparison of epialleles within multiple tumour regions enables phylogenetic analyses, identification of differentially expressed epialleles, and provides a measure of epigenetic heterogeneity.

  Study EGAS00001002484

• Combining transcription factor binding affinities with open chromatin data for accurate gene expression prediction

  The binding and contribution of transcription factors (TF) to cell specific gene expression is often deduced from open-chromatin measurements to avoid cost and labour intensive TF ChIP-seq assays.It is important to develop reliable and fast computational methods for accurate TF binding prediction in open-chromatin regions (OCRs). Here, we report a novel segmentation-based method, TEPIC, to predict TF binding by combining sets of OCRs with position weight matrices.TEPIC can be applied to various open-chromatin data, e.g. DNaseI-seq and NOMe-seq, using either peaks or footprints as input.In addition to open-chromatin data, also Histone-Marks (HMs) can be used in TEPIC to identify candidate TF binding sites.TEPIC computes TF affinities and uses open-chromatin/HM signal intensity as quantitative measures of TF binding strength.Using machine learning techniques, we show that incorporating low affinity binding sites improves our ability to explain gene expression variability compared to the standard presence/absence classification of binding sites.Further, we show that both footprints and peaks capture essential TF binding events and lead to a good prediction performance.In our application, gene-based scores computed by TEPIC with one open-chromatin assay nearly reach the quality of several TF ChIP-seq datasets.Finally, we show that these scores correctly predict known transcriptional regulators as illustrated by the application to novel DNaseI-seq and NOMe-seq data for primary human hepatocytes and CD4+ T-cells, respectively.

  Study EGAS00001002073

• Atypical 3q26/MECOM rearrangements genocopy inv(3)/t(3;3) in acute myeloid leukemia

  Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with inv(3)/t(3;3)(q21q26) is a distinct WHO recognized entity, characterized by its aggressive course and poor prognosis. In this subtype of AML, the translocation of a GATA2 enhancer (3q21) to MECOM (3q26) results in overexpression of the MECOM isoform EVI1 and monoallelic expression of GATA2 from the unaffected allele. The full-length MECOM transcript, MDS1-EVI1, is not expressed as the result of the 3q26 rearrangement. Besides the classical inv(3)/t(3;3), a number of other 3q26/MECOM rearrangements with poor treatment response have been reported in AML. Here we demonstrate, in a group of 33 AML patients with atypical 3q26 rearrangements, MECOM involvement with EVI1 overexpression, but no or low MDS1-EVI1 levels. Moreover, the 3q26 translocations in these AML patients often involve super-enhancers of genes active in myeloid development (e.g. CD164, PROM1, CDK6 or MYC). In more than 50% of these cases allele specific GATA2 expression was observed, either by copy number loss or by an unexplained allelic imbalance. Altogether, atypical 3q26 recapitulate the main leukemic mechanism of inv(3)/t(3;3) AML, namely EVI1 overexpression driven by enhancer hijacking, absent MDS1-EVI1 expression and potential GATA2 involvement. Therefore, we conclude that both atypical 3q26/MECOM and inv(3)/t(3;3) can be classified as a single entity of 3q26-rearranged AMLs. Routine analyses determining MECOM rearrangements, EVI1 and MDS1-EVI1 expression are required to recognize 3q-rearranged AML cases.

  Study EGAS00001004325

• Identification of the mutational consequences of precancerous liver disease (including alcohol abuse) on the genomes of human adult stem cells.

  Stem cells are believed to be the cells-of-origin cancer. Nevertheless, their genome remains remarkably stable during life. To increase insight into how these cells can drive tumorigenesis, we set out to determine the genomic integrity of human adult stem cells from patients with liver disease associated with increased cancer risk. To this end, we characterized genome-wide mutation profiles of single ASCs from livers of patients with alcoholic liver disease, non-alcoholic liver disease and primary sclerosing cholangitis. The patients included in our study received a liver transplant due to their liver disease. Strikingly, we found that ASCs in these livers maintain a stable genome and have comparable mutation rates as healthy human liver ASCs. We did observe more nonsense and nonsynonymous mutations in COSMIC cancer genes that are hit by dominant mutations in tumors in comparison to healthy ASCs (n.s.), including two ASCs in alcoholic liver disease patients with a nonsense mutation in PTPRK. Next, we sequenced 5 biopsies of an alcoholic tumour to identify the mutational patterns in the tumour-initiating ASC. We found that the mutational patterns are, again, similar to healthy liver, but the mutational load is slightly higher. This suggests that the increased cancer risk in the liver disease patients is not caused by an increased mutational load, but rather that the precancerous liver environment promotes outgrowth of cells that would normally be selected against.

  Study EGAS00001002983

• Partner-independent fusion gene detection by multiplexed CRISPR/Cas9 enrichment and long-read Nanopore sequencing

  Fusion genes are hallmarks of various cancer types and important determinants for diagnosis, prognosis and treatment possibilities. The promiscuity of fusion genes with respect to partner choice and exact breakpoint-positions restricts their detection in the diagnostic setting, even for known and recurrent fusion gene configurations. To accurately identify these gene fusions in an unbiased manner, we developed FUDGE: a FUsion gene Detection assay from Gene Enrichment. FUDGE couples target-selected and strand-specific CRISPR/Cas9 activity for enrichment and detection of fusion gene drivers (e.g. BRAF, EWSR1, KMT2A/MLL) - without prior knowledge of fusion partner or breakpoint-location - to long-read Nanopore sequencing. FUDGE encompasses a dedicated bioinformatics approach (NanoFG) to detect fusion genes from Nanopore sequencing data. Our strategy is flexible with respect to target choice and enables multiplexed enrichment for simultaneous analysis of several genes in multiple samples in a single sequencing run. We observe on average a 508-fold on-target enrichment and identify fusion breakpoints at nucleotide resolution - all within two days. We demonstrate that FUDGE effectively identifies fusion genes in cancer cell lines, tumor samples and on whole genome amplified DNA irrespective of partner gene or breakpoint-position in 100% of cases. Furthermore, we show that FUDGE is superior to routine diagnostic methods for fusion gene detection. In summary, we have developed a rapid and versatile fusion gene detection assay, providing an unparalleled opportunity for pan-cancer detection of fusion genes in routine diagnostics.

  Study EGAS00001003964

• Small variants in mtDNA Canary Islands - WES Illumina (ITER)

  The mitochondrial genome (mtDNA) is of interest for a range of fields including evolutionary, forensic, and medical genetics. Human mitogenomes can be classified into evolutionary related haplogroups that provide ancestral information and pedigree relationships. Because of this and the advent of high-throughput sequencing (HTS) technology, there is a diversity of bioinformatic tools for haplogroup classification. We present a benchmarking of the 11 most salient tools for human mtDNA classification using empirical whole-genome (WGS) and whole-exome (WES) short-read sequencing data from 36 unrelated donors. Besides, because of its relevance, we also assess the best performing tool in third-generation long noisy read WGS data obtained with nanopore technology for a subset of the donors. We found that, for short-read WGS, most of the tools exhibit high accuracy for haplogroup classification irrespective of the input file used for the analysis. However, for short- read WES, Haplocheck and MixEmt were the most accurate tools. Based on the performance shown for WGS and WES, and the accompanying qualitative assessment, Haplocheck stands out as the most complete tool. For third-generation HTS data, we also showed that Haplocheck was able to accurately retrieve mtDNA haplogroups for all samples assessed, although only after following assembly-based approaches (either based on a referenced-based assembly or a hybrid de novo assembly). Taken together, our results provide guidance for researchers to select the most suitable tool to conduct the mtDNA analyses from HTS data.

  Study EGAS00001005678

• Small variants in mtDNA Canary Islands - WGS Illumina (ITER)

  The mitochondrial genome (mtDNA) is of interest for a range of fields including evolutionary, forensic, and medical genetics. Human mitogenomes can be classified into evolutionary related haplogroups that provide ancestral information and pedigree relationships. Because of this and the advent of high-throughput sequencing (HTS) technology, there is a diversity of bioinformatic tools for haplogroup classification. We present a benchmarking of the 11 most salient tools for human mtDNA classification using empirical whole-genome (WGS) and whole-exome (WES) short-read sequencing data from 36 unrelated donors. Besides, because of its relevance, we also assess the best performing tool in third-generation long noisy read WGS data obtained with nanopore technology for a subset of the donors. We found that, for short-read WGS, most of the tools exhibit high accuracy for haplogroup classification irrespective of the input file used for the analysis. However, for short- read WES, Haplocheck and MixEmt were the most accurate tools. Based on the performance shown for WGS and WES, and the accompanying qualitative assessment, Haplocheck stands out as the most complete tool. For third-generation HTS data, we also showed that Haplocheck was able to accurately retrieve mtDNA haplogroups for all samples assessed, although only after following assembly-based approaches (either based on a referenced-based assembly or a hybrid de novo assembly). Taken together, our results provide guidance for researchers to select the most suitable tool to conduct the mtDNA analyses from HTS data.

  Study EGAS00001005679

• DNA methylation analysis on PBL obtained from male patients with UC-PSC, UC and HC

  Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is a chronic inflammatory liver disease affecting the intra- and extrahepatic bile ducts, and is strongly associated with ulcerative colitis (UC). In this study, we explored the peripheral blood DNA methylome and its immune cell composition in patients with PSC-UC, UC, and healthy controls (HC) with the aim to develop a predictive assay in distinguishing patients with PSC-UC from those with UC alone. The peripheral blood DNA methylome of male patients with PSC and concomitant UC, UC and HCs was profiled using the Illumina HumanMethylation Infinium EPIC BeadChip (850K) array. Differentially methylated CpG position (DMP) and region (DMR) analyses were performed alongside gradient boosting classification analyses to discern PSC-UC from UC patients. As observed differences in the DNA methylome could be the result of differences in cellular populations, we additionally employed mass cytometry to characterize the immune cell compositions. Genome wide methylation analysis revealed no differentially methylated positions between PSC-UC and UC patients. Nonetheless, using gradient boosting we were capable of discerning PSC-UC from UC with an area under the receiver operator curve (AUROC) of 0.80. Four CpG sites annotated to the NINJ2 gene were found to strongly contribute to the predictive performance. While mass cytometry analyses corroborated the largely similar blood cell composition among patients with PSC-UC, UC and HC, a higher abundance of myeloid cells was observed in UC compared to PSC-UC patients.

  Study EGAS00001005832

• A novel orthotopic patient-derived xenograft model of radiation-induced glioma following medulloblastoma

  Radiation-induced glioma (RIG) is a highly aggressive brain cancer arising as a consequence of radiation therapy. We report a case of RIG that arose in the brain stem following treatment for paediatric medulloblastoma, and the development and characterisation of a matched orthotopic patient-derived xenograft (PDX) model (TK-RIG915). Patient and PDX tumours were analysed using DNA methylation profiling, whole genome sequencing (WGS) and RNA sequencing. While initially thought to be a diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) based on disease location, results from methylation profiling and WGS were not consistent with this diagnosis. Furthermore, clustering analyses based on RNA expression suggested the tumours were distinct from primary DIPG. Additional gene expression analysis demonstrated concordance with a published RIG expression profile. Multiple genetic alterations that enhance PI3K/AKT and Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK signalling were discovered in TK-RIG915 including an activating mutation in PIK3CA, upregulation of PDGFRA and AKT2, inactivating mutations in NF1, and a gain-of-function mutation in PTPN11. Additionally, deletion of CDKN2A/B, increased IDH1 expression, and decreased ARID1A expression were observed. Detection of phospho-S6, -4EBP1 and -ERK via immunohistochemistry confirmed PI3K pathway and ERK activation. Here, we report one of the first PDX models for RIG, which recapitulates the patient disease and is molecularly distinct from primary brain stem glioma. Genetic interrogation of this model has enabled the identification of potential therapeutic vulnerabilities in this currently incurable disease.

  Study EGAS00001004709

• Small variants in mtDNA Canary Islands - WGS Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ITER)

  The mitochondrial genome (mtDNA) is of interest for a range of fields including evolutionary, forensic, and medical genetics. Human mitogenomes can be classified into evolutionary related haplogroups that provide ancestral information and pedigree relationships. Because of this and the advent of high-throughput sequencing (HTS) technology, there is a diversity of bioinformatic tools for haplogroup classification. We present a benchmarking of the 11 most salient tools for human mtDNA classification using empirical whole-genome (WGS) and whole-exome (WES) short-read sequencing data from 36 unrelated donors. Besides, because of its relevance, we also assess the best performing tool in third-generation long noisy read WGS data obtained with nanopore technology for a subset of the donors. We found that, for short-read WGS, most of the tools exhibit high accuracy for haplogroup classification irrespective of the input file used for the analysis. However, for short- read WES, Haplocheck and MixEmt were the most accurate tools. Based on the performance shown for WGS and WES, and the accompanying qualitative assessment, Haplocheck stands out as the most complete tool. For third-generation HTS data, we also showed that Haplocheck was able to accurately retrieve mtDNA haplogroups for all samples assessed, although only after following assembly-based approaches (either based on a referenced-based assembly or a hybrid de novo assembly). Taken together, our results provide guidance for researchers to select the most suitable tool to conduct the mtDNA analyses from HTS data.

  Study EGAS00001005677

• Single-cell ATAC-seq analysis for COVID19 patients

  While SARS-CoV-2 infection causes mild respiratory disease in most individuals, a small group of patients develops severe COVID-19. Dysfunctional innate immune responses have been identified to contribute to differences in COVID-19 severity, but the key regulators are still unknown. Here, we present an integrative single-cell epigenetics, transcriptomic, and genetics analysis of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from hospitalized and convalescent COVID-19 patients. In classical monocytes, we identified 41.3% of significantly up-regulated genes in hospitalized COVID-19 patients potentially induced by differential chromatin accessibility. Sub-clustering and motif-enrichment analyses of monocytes reveal disease condition-specific regulation by transcription factors, such as C/EBPs and SPI1, and their targets, including a long-noncoding RNA LUCAT1, which further regulates interferon responses and is associated with the need for oxygen supply of COVID-19 patients. The interaction between C/EBPs and LUCAT1 was validated through loss-of-function experiments. Finally, we investigated genetic risk variants that exhibit allele-specific open chromatin (ASoC) in promoters/enhancers of COVID-19 patients. Integrating our data with publicly available expression quantitative trait loci and chromosomal interactions indicates that ASoC SNP rs6800484-C is associated with lower expression of CCR2, which may contributeto higher viral loads in lungs and higher risk of COVID-19 hospitalization. Altogether, our study highlights the diverse genetic and epigenetic regulators that contribute to the innate immune responses of different COVID-19 patients.

  Study EGAS00001006559

• Single-cell RNA-seq analysis for COVID19 patients

  While SARS-CoV-2 infection causes mild respiratory disease in most individuals, a small group of patients develops severe COVID-19. Dysfunctional innate immune responses have been identified to contribute to differences in COVID-19 severity, but the key regulators are still unknown. Here, we present an integrative single-cell epigenetics, transcriptomic, and genetics analysis of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from hospitalized and convalescent COVID-19 patients. In classical monocytes, we identified 41.3% of significantly up-regulated genes in hospitalized COVID-19 patients potentially induced by differential chromatin accessibility. Sub-clustering and motif-enrichment analyses of monocytes reveal disease condition-specific regulation by transcription factors, such as C/EBPs and SPI1, and their targets, including a long-noncoding RNA LUCAT1, which further regulates interferon responses and is associated with the need for oxygen supply of COVID-19 patients. The interaction between C/EBPs and LUCAT1 was validated through loss-of-function experiments. Finally, we investigated genetic risk variants that exhibit allele-specific open chromatin (ASoC) in promoters/enhancers of COVID-19 patients. Integrating our data with publicly available expression quantitative trait loci and chromosomal interactions indicates that ASoC SNP rs6800484-C is associated with lower expression of CCR2, which may contributeto higher viral loads in lungs and higher risk of COVID-19 hospitalization. Altogether, our study highlights the diverse genetic and epigenetic regulators that contribute to the innate immune responses of different COVID-19 patients.

  Study EGAS00001006560

• Atypical B cells and impaired SARS-CoV-2 neutralisation following heterologous vaccination in the elderly

  Age is a major risk factor for hospitalization and death after SARS-CoV-2 infection, even in vaccinees. Suboptimal responses to a primary vaccination course have been reported in the elderly, but there is little information regarding the impact of age on responses to booster third doses. Here we show that individuals 70 or older who received a primary two dose schedule with AZD1222 and booster third dose with mRNA vaccine achieved significantly lower neutralizing antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 spike pseudotyped virus compared to those below 70 at one month post booster. Neither the concentration of serum binding anti spike IgG antibody, nor the frequency of spike- specific B cells showed differences by age grouping. Impaired neutralization potency and breadth post-third dose in the elderly was associated with enrichment of circulating “atypical” spike-specific B cells expressing CD11c and FCRL5. Presence of these atypical B cells was confirmed by scRNA seq. However, when considering individuals who received three doses of mRNA vaccine, we did not observe statistically significant differences in neutralization or enrichment in atypical B cells by age grouping following dose 3. Together, our data reveal impaired neutralising antibody responses in the elderly after heterologous vaccination with AdV followed by mRNA booster dose, but not in homologous three dose mRNA vaccination highlighting that different vaccine formats differentially instruct the memory B cell response.

  Study EGAS00001007385

• Targeting the p53 pathway to treat Malignant Rhabdoid and High-Risk Atypical Teratoid Rhabdoid Tumors

  Rhabdoid tumors (RTs) predominantly affect young children and are among the deadliest pediatric solid tumors. Despite multimodal therapy consisting of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, children with these tumors have median survival of less than one year. RTs can arise throughout the body, including the central nervous system (CNS) where they are called atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumors (AT/RTs), and in extra-CNS locations such as the kidneys and other soft tissues where they are designated malignant RTs (MRTs). We previously identified MDM2 and MDM4 as therapeutic vulnerabilities in RTs and showed that treatment with the MDM2 inhibitor idasanutlin increased survival in mice bearing MRT xenografts. However, the therapeutic potential of idasanutlin in CNS RT tumors is unknown. Single agent therapies are prone to resistance and show limited clinical benefit on their own. Therefore, we sought to identify combination strategies incorporating idasanutlin that would be effective in both CNS and extra-CNS RTs. Here, we show that the XPO1 inhibitor selinexor increased nuclear retention of p53 and potentiated idasanutlin-induced p53 pathway activation and cytotoxicity in AT/RT and MRT cell lines in vitro. Importantly, combination therapy limited acquired resistance through TP53 mutation. In vivo, combination therapy was well-tolerated, reduced tumor burden, and increased survival in orthotopic models of both AT/RT and MRT. Our results demonstrate that combining idasanutlin with selinexor is a promising therapeutic strategy for children with rhabdoid tumors.

  Study EGAS00001007680

• DHODH is a synthetic-lethal vulnerability in BCOR-deficient acute myeloid leukemia

  Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) remains challenging to treat, especially in cases with mutations in the BCL-6 co- repressor (BCOR), which are associated with poor prognosis and chemo-resistance. In this study, we reveal a synthetic lethal interaction between BCOR and dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH). We demonstrate that BCOR-deficient cells have a heightened sensitivity to DHODH inhibitors such as brequinar and leflunomide, that are already in clinical use. We confirm that DHODH inhibition selectively induces cell death in BCOR-mutant cells in multiple cellular models, in malignant and non-malignant cells, through chemical and genetic manipulation. Interestingly, we find that the dependency on DHODH does not stem from its role in de novo pyrimidine biosynthesis disruption. Rather, DHODH’s role in the electron transport chain, essential for mitigating reactive oxygen species, may be the physiological vulnerability that pushes BCOR-mutant cells toward cell death when DHODH is inhibited. DHODH inhibitors could be repurposed as targeted therapies for BCOR-mutant tumors, offering a promising strategy for precision medicine in AML and other cancers.

  Study EGAS50000001108

• DHODH is a synthetic-lethal vulnerability in BCOR-deficient acute myeloid leukemia

  Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) remains challenging to treat, especially in cases with mutations in the BCL-6 co- repressor (BCOR), which are associated with poor prognosis and chemo-resistance. In this study, we reveal a synthetic lethal interaction between BCOR and dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH). We demonstrate that BCOR-deficient cells have a heightened sensitivity to DHODH inhibitors such as brequinar and leflunomide, that are already in clinical use. We confirm that DHODH inhibition selectively induces cell death in BCOR-mutant cells in multiple cellular models, in malignant and non-malignant cells, through chemical and genetic manipulation. Interestingly, we find that the dependency on DHODH does not stem from its role in de novo pyrimidine biosynthesis disruption. Rather, DHODH’s role in the electron transport chain, essential for mitigating reactive oxygen species, may be the physiological vulnerability that pushes BCOR-mutant cells toward cell death when DHODH is inhibited. DHODH inhibitors could be repurposed as targeted therapies for BCOR-mutant tumors, offering a promising strategy for precision medicine in AML and other cancers.

  Study EGAS50000001060

• MINCR is a MYC-induced lncRNA able to modulate MYC’s transcriptional network in Burkitt lymphoma cells

  Despite the established role of the transcription factor MYC in cancer, little is known about the involvement of lncRNAs in mediating MYC’s function. Here we have intersected RNA-sequencing data from MYC-inducible cell lines, from a cohort of 91 mature B-cell lymphomas and from sorted germinal-center B-cells. By this approach, we identified 13 lncRNAs differentially expressed in IG-MYC-positive Burkitt lymphoma and regulated by MYC in the model cell lines. Among them we focused on a lncRNA that we named MINCR, showing a strong correlation with MYC expression in MYC-positive lymphomas and in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas. RNAi experiments showed that MINCR controls cellular viability by influencing the expression of MYC-regulated cell cycle genes. Finally we provide evidences that down-regulation of AURKA, AURKB and CTD1 may explain the reduction in cellular proliferation observed upon MINCR knock-down. We therefore suggest that MINCR acts as a modulator of MYC transcriptional control of cell cycle genes.

  Study EGAS00001001199

• Reading about genomic analysis of pan-neuroblastoma

  There are virtually no research fields that do not benefit from the large-scale genomic analysis that are so popular nowadays. For research into diseases with highly diverse clinical behavior like pediatric neuroblastoma, nevertheless, this type of approach has been a game-changer. Samuel W. Brady and colleagues, from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, have gathered data from 702 neuroblastomas which were profiled by whole genome sequencing (WGS, n = 205), whole exome sequencing (WES, n = 539), and/or RNA-Seq. Less than half of the samples were generated during this study, while the others were obtained from previous work. Part of the WES data was indeed deposited in EGA in 2012 (EGA study EGAS00001000213). A scratchy summary about the huge work from Samuel W. Brady and colleagues, published in Nature Communications this October 2020 “These findings suggest that the sympathetic nervous system, the tissue from which neuroblastoma arises, is susceptible to different oncogenic insults at different times during development, which could be explored in future investigations using animal models.” Conclude the authors, highlighting the importance of their findings. Pediatric neuroblastomas are classified according to clinical and molecular features into low, intermediate, and high risk. Age plays a critical role in the classification, with younger children having an overall better prognosis. The samples included in this study belonged to all ages and risk-groups: the aim of such set up is the identification of age-associated molecular aberrations. The authors defined a mutational landscape of pediatric neuroblastoma including rare driver events, impossible to pick with a smaller data set. Interestingly, most driver mutations' frequency was found to be age-related. Those include alterations on MYCN, TERT, PTPRD, and Ras pathway, in addition to the previously reported ATRX. In addition, the large data set allowed the authors to define co-existence relations between the mutations (mutual exclusion or co-occurrence) which is a crucial puzzle piece to unravel the mechanisms driving the pathogenesis. Enjoy this really interesting article, open source on Pubmed.

  Blog genomic-analysis-of-pan-neuroblastoma

• Introducing Federated EGA Affiliates: a newly defined tier in the Federated EGA Network

  We're happy to announce that we are now accepting Affiliates in the Federated EGA Network! Federated EGA is a global network of repositories enabling secure discovery and access to sensitive human data. Currently, Federated EGA consists of Central EGA (CEGA), which serves the global community, and nine national Nodes that serve respective jurisdictions. Did you know that the Federated EGA (FEGA) has always envisioned a third tier within the network? This brings us to FEGA Affiliates, recently defined in the newly approved "Federated EGA Structure and Organisation" document. This new tier broadens the range of institutions or organisations that can become part of FEGA. Thus begins a new era for the network. What is a FEGA Affiliate? A FEGA Affiliate archives and serves controlled-access data within its own governance scope, while still participating in federated discovery through the EGA catalogue. Affiliates can be individual organisations or institutions, healthcare genomics initiatives, consortia of institutions, as well as project-specific consortia (national or international). In practical terms, a FEGA Affiliate: Hosts and safeguards the data it archives. Submits non-personal metadata to CEGA so studies are discoverable and can receive EGA accessions. Manages permissions and data access workflows for its datasets. Provides data access and/or distribution, along with support, to authorised users. Key takeaways about FEGA Affiliates FEGA is now organised into three tiers: CEGA, FEGA Nodes, and FEGA Affiliates. Affiliates archive data from their own organisation and/or selected partner institutions (for example, an international consortium). Affiliates make studies discoverable through the EGA catalogue by submitting non-personal metadata for accessioning. Access decisions and conditions are managed locally by the Affiliate (e.g. distribution or access in a trusted research environment). Are you considering whether your institution or project might be a good fit as a FEGA Affiliate? Would you like to learn more about this tier? We have published a blog post that addresses potential common questions, providing answers on this topic. You can read it here.

  Blog fega-affiliates

• Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS)

  Background and Rationale for the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS) Over the last several decades, advances in treatments for childhood and adolescent cancer have substantially improved survival following diagnosis. These improvements gave rise to the responsibility for investigating long-term treatment-associated morbidity and mortality. Early efforts to describe late effects were largely conducted through single-institution and limited consortia studies. However, by the mid-1980s, it became increasingly clear that these approaches had inherent limitations, including small sample size, convenience sampling, incompletely characterized populations, and limited length of follow-up. To overcome these limitations, the CCSS was proposed and funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) as a U01 grant in 1994. Subsequently, the strengths of the CCSS, including an efficient and extensive infrastructure, plus expanding database and biorepository, were recognized and appreciated. Thus, in consultation with the NCI, the CCSS was converted to a U24 (resource grant) funding mechanism to serve the scientific community in 2000. The overarching goal of the CCSS resource is to increase the conduct of innovative and high impact research related to pediatric cancer survivorship. CCSS has been used extensively by researchers from a wide range of disciplines to address a broad spectrum of topics. Strengths of the resource include its large size, comprehensive annotation of treatment exposures, ongoing longitudinal follow-up with characterization of a wide array of participant characteristics and outcomes, and an established biorepository. Design of the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study The Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS) is a multi-institutional, multi-disciplinary collaborative research resource comprised of a retrospective hospital-based cohort of survivors of childhood cancer and a comparison sibling cohort. Eligible survivors from 31 participating institutions were diagnosed between 1970 and 1999, prior to age 21 years, with selected common pediatric cancers (leukemia, central nervous system tumors, Hodgkin lymphoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, kidney tumors, neuroblastoma, soft tissue sarcoma, or bone tumors). All patients who survived five years from the date of diagnosis were eligible, regardless of disease or treatment status. The baseline questionnaire was completed by 24,368 survivors and 5,039 siblings recruited to serve as a comparison group. To date, participants have completed three general follow-up surveys, as well as a number of specialized surveys on specific topics (e.g. health care, insurance, screening practices, men's and women's health issues, adolescent health, sleep and fatigue). In addition, biological samples (buccal cells, saliva and/or blood) have been collected for over 11,000 participants. Full descriptions of the design and characteristics of the CCSS have been previously published (Robison et al; Leisenring et al.), and available data and samples are described at https://ccss.stjude.org/develop-a-study/gwas-data-resource.html. Treatment Data in the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study A key feature of CCSS is the availability of detailed treatment data, which were collected by abstraction of medical records for each individual member of the cohort. Detailed abstraction included dates of therapy, protocol information, and specific details regarding surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. Quantitative dose details were collected for 22 specific chemotherapeutic agents, including alkylating agents, anthracyclines, platinum compounds and epipodophyllotoxins. In addition to individual agent doses, algorithms have been created to calculate cumulative doses of all drugs in a specific class, such as anthracyclines (doxorubicin, daunomycin and idarubicin) or platinum agents (cisplatinum and carboplatinum). Data abstracted for surgeries included dates and both the names and corresponding International Classification of Diseases (9th revision) code. For radiation treatment data, all relevant records were sent to the Radiation Physics Center at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center for detailed abstraction and dosimetry. Initial body region dosimetry was performed for all participants, followed by more detailed dosimetry as needed for specific studies. Genomics Data in the Childhood Cancer Survivor StudyThe NCI's Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics and CCSS investigators collaborated to conduct genomics studies (SNP array genotyping and whole exome sequencing) using samples from the CCSS Biorepository. Studies included all cohort participants with available DNA regardless of sex or ancestry when the genomics studies were initiated. Phenotype Data in the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study Vital status and cause of death for both participants and non-participants is determined via linkage with the National Death Index (NDI). Identification of subsequent neoplasms is based on self-report, followed by validation using medical records, or via NDI. A wide array of additional health outcomes have been ascertained via a comprehensive set of questions on the CCSS questionnaires, covering potential adverse events across a range of organ systems (hearing/vision/speech, urinary, hormonal, heart and circulatory, respiratory, digestive, brain and nervous systems). In addition to health outcomes, longitudinal data have been collected on demographics, health behaviors, family history, screening practices, insurance status, and a range of psychosocial and neurocognitive factors. A full listing of available variables and copies of the CCSS questionnaires are available at http://ccss.stjude.org. Research Areas in the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study Extensive use by the research community has resulted in over 265 published manuscripts on a wide range of topics, including associations between treatment factors and mortality, subsequent neoplasms, chronic health conditions, cardiac events, neurocognitive sequelae, psychosocial factors, fertility, and health status. Additional topics have included health behaviors, screening practices, health care access and utilization, statistical and exposure assessment methodology, and development of risk prediction models. A full listing of published manuscripts using CCSS data is available on the CCSS website at https://ccss.stjude.org/published-research/publications.html. The Childhood Cancer Survivor Study as a Resource for Investigators The CCSS is an NCI-funded resource (U24 CA55727) to promote and facilitate research among long-term survivors of cancer diagnosed during childhood and adolescence. Interested investigators are encouraged to develop research ideas and propose projects within CCSS, whether or not they are from a participating CCSS institution. The CCSS is now accepting proposals to collaborate with CCSS and NCI investigators in the use of genomics data and corresponding outcomes-related data to address innovative research questions relating to potential genetic contributions to risk for treatment-related outcomes. Any researcher, or group of researchers, qualified to conduct genetic research can submit a proposal. There are no restrictions relative to country, institution, or prior involvement in CCSS. A full description of the process for developing a proposal for genetic research in CCSS can be found at https://ccss.stjude.org/develop-a-study/gwas-data-resource.html, along with listings of approved proposals.

  Study phs001327

• HSC_population_dynamics___KX004_samples___WGS

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

  Study EGAS00001003768

• HSC_population_dynamics___CB002_samples

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

  Study EGAS00001003743

• HSC_population_dynamics___KX007_samples

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

  Study EGAS00001004193

• HSC_population_dynamics___KX008_samples

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

  Study EGAS00001004490

• HSC_population_dynamics_CBD_samples

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

  Study EGAS00001003091

• HSC_population_dynamics___KX003_samples

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

  Study EGAS00001003550

• HSC_population_dynamics___TG001_2_samples

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

  Study EGAS00001003688

• Comparison of the performance of two commercial genome-wide association study genotyping platforms in Han Chinese Samples

  Affymetrix 6.0, Illumina OMNIExpress, and llumina Immunochip genotype data for Han Chinese population including rheumatoid arthritis cases and controls. Data is in PLINK binary format. Illumina genotype clustering was performed using Illumina’s BeadStudio software. SNPs were reclustered using the study samples, low quality subjects were removed, and a subset of clustering results were manually inspected and verified. All SNPs with GenCall scores less than 0.15 were excluded. For Affymetrix chips, clustering was performed using the program Birdseed version 2, as implemented using Affymetrix Genotyper Console v4.0, using the default quality control (QC) thresholds.

  Study EGAS00000000131

• An isoform quantitative trait locus in SBNO2 links genetic susceptibility to Crohn’s disease with defective antimicrobial activity

  Despite major advances in linking single genetic variants to single causal genes, the significance of genetic variation on transcript-level regulation of expression, transcript-specific functions, and relevance to human disease has been poorly investigated. Strawberry notch homolog 2 (SBNO2) is a candidate gene in a susceptibility locus with different variants associated with Crohn’s disease and bone mineral density. The SBNO2 locus is also differentially methylated in Crohn’s disease but the functional mechanisms are unknown. Here we show that the isoforms of SBNO2 are differentially regulated by lipopolysaccharide and IL-10. We identify Crohn’s disease associated isoform quantitative trait loci that negatively regulate the expression of the noncanonical isoform 2 corresponding with the methylation signals at the isoform 2 promoter in IBD and CD. The two isoforms of SBNO2 drive differential gene networks with isoform 2 dominantly impacting antimicrobial activity in macrophages. Our data highlight the role of isoform quantitative trait loci to understand disease susceptibility and resolve underlying mechanisms of disease. This dataset contains RNAseq raw data from CD14+ monocyte-derived macrophages and siRNA-mediated knockdown experiments, as well as RNAseq raw data from THP-1 monocytes-derived macrophages following ectopic expression of SBNO2 isoforms.

  Dataset EGAD50000000264

• AVENIO Expanded ctDNA panel sequence alignments (BAMs) from plasma DNA of lung cancer patients from the OSCILLATE trial

  The AVENIO ctDNA Expanded Kit is a next-generation sequencing (NGS) liquid biopsy assay with a 77 gene panel (192 kb) containing genes in U.S. National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Guidelines and emerging cancer biomarkers. This pan-cancer assay was applied to 100 plasma samples from patients with lung cancer undergoing treatment in the OSCILLATE trial. After 150 bp paired-end sequencing, reads were aligned to the human genome reference with the AVENIO Oncology Analysis Software. These files are the sorted non-deduplicated alignments generated by the analysis software used for subsequent variant, indel and CNV calling.

  Study EGAS50000000103

• Effects of tobacco smoking on the tumor immune microenvironment in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

  This study was designed to measure immune cell differences between HNSCC patients according to smoking history. We measured CD3, CD8, FoxP3, PD-1 and PD-L1 for immune markers and Pancytokeratin to distinguish between tumor and surrounding tissue. We observed that current smokers have significantly lower numbers of immune cells surrounding the tumor than former or never smokers. GSEA analysis of RNAseq data from this cohort suggests that smoking is associated with reduced Interferon (IFN) Alpha and Gamma levels, and also with reduced levels of IFN-response cytokines CXCL9, 10 and 11. These results emphasize the hypothetical benefits of smoking cessation during treatment for HNSCC.

  Study phs001994

• PGRN/PAT: The genomic basis for susceptibility to drug-induced long QT syndrome (diLQTS)

  The goal of this study was to search for genetic variants that could be responsible for modifying the risk of drug-induced long QT syndrome (diLQTS). diLQTS is a relatively common adverse drug event and has been a leading cause for drug relabeling and withdrawal from the market. Our hypothesis, that variants in genes which regulate electrical properties in the heart modify the risk of diLQTS, was tested by sequencing approximately 225 patients of European descent using next-generation targeted captured or whole exome sequencing. Data from cases and controls (1:2) were analyzed to identify both rare and common genetic variation.

  Study phs000808

• Genomic and Transcriptomic Profiling of Patients with Malignant Pleural and Peritoneal Mesothelioma: The NCI Cohort

  Malignant mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer with limited treatment options and poor prognosis. Better understanding of mesothelioma genomics and transcriptomics could advance novel therapies. We performed whole-exome sequencing (WXS) of germline and tumors of 122 patients, and RNA-sequencing (RNA-Seq) of tumor samples of 100 patients with pleural, peritoneal, and tunica-vaginalis mesothelioma.The biospecimens used in this study were collected as a part of the Mesothelioma Natural History Protocol (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01950572), wherein, samples were collected from subjects with malignant mesothelioma as listed in the eligibility criteria below and written consent from each participant was obtained before sample acquisition.

  Study phs002207

• Genetic Basis of Cryptorchidism

  Non-syndromic cryptorchidism is a common malformation, but the genetic loci that increase susceptibility to cryptorchidism remain unknown. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) was completed to determine whether common allelic variants are associated with susceptibility to cryptorchidism. Two sets of discovery groups were genotyped. Group 1 (559 cases and 1772 controls) was genotyped with HumanHap550v1.0, HumanHap550v3.0 or Human610-quad v1.0. Group 2 (353 cases and 1149 controls) was genotyped with HumanOmniExpress-12v1 or HumanOmniExpress-12v1-1. The sample and marker QCs were performed separately using PLINK (v1.07; http://pngu.mgh.harvard.edu/purcell/plink/) and logistic regression analyses were performed with first and second multidimensional scaling (MDS) components as covariates.

  Study phs000986

• Gene Expression in an African American Schizophrenia Dataset

  Schizophrenia is a common and severe psychotic disorder. While some common SNPs and rare copy number variants have been identified as being significantly associated with disease risk, the biological mechanisms remain largely undefined. To identify gene expression abnormalities in schizophrenia, we generated whole-genome gene expression profiles using RNAseq on lymphoblastoid cell lines from schizophrenia cases and controls of African American ancestry. Genes related to immune processes were enriched in the genes differentially expressed in the schizophrenia cases. Approximately half of the differentially expressed genes in this African American dataset were also differentially expressed by affection status in our previously studied European ancestry dataset (PMID: 28418402).

  Study phs002842

• Next Generation Mendelian Genetics: Familial Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis

  The NHGRI Next Generation Mendelian Genetics project uses exome resequencing to identify variants in unsolved Mendelian diseases. Familial hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (fHLH) is a serious immune disorder that results from defective cytotoxic lymphocyte function. Autosomal recessive mutations in PFP1, UNC13D, STX11, STBP2, or RAB27, and hemizygous mutations in SH2D1A or BIRC4, account for known causes of the disease, but 30-70% of patients in North America lack a known genetic etiology. This project was designed to identify additional genetic abnormalities from HLH patients. The exome sequences of four unrelated individuals with a diagnosis of HLH, but without mutations in genes known to cause disease, were obtained by massively parallel DNA sequencing.

  Study phs000537

• NHLBI TOPMed - NHGRI CCDG: Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Atrial Fibrillation Study

  The Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Atrial Fibrillation Study was initiated in 2001. The study has enrolled serial probands, unaffected and affected family members with atrial fibrillation. At enrollment participants undergo a structured interview to systematically capture their past medical history, AF treatments, and family history. An electrocardiogram is performed; the results of an echocardiogram are obtained; and blood samples are obtained. For the TOPMed WGS project only early-onset atrial fibrillation cases were sequenced. Early-onset atrial fibrillation was defined as an age of onset prior to 66 years of age. Comprehensive phenotypic and pedigree data for study participants are available through dbGaP phs001001.

  Study phs001062

• Whole Exome Sequencing of Colorectal Cancer Patients from the Nurses' Health Study (NHS) and Health Professionals Follow-up Study (HPFS)

  Colorectal cancer is a molecularly heterogeneous disease. Whole Exome Sequencing from patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer in the NHS and HPFS cohorts will extend our understanding of the genetic changes occurring in specific clinical contexts in the disease. This effort has the potential to discover novel recurrently mutated genes and pathways in colorectal cancer that can be functionally validated and give further insights to colorectal cancer pathogenesis. All exome sequencing was performed at the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT; samples sequence capture was performed using Agilent SureSelect Human All Exon Kit v2 and sequencing was performed on an Illumina HiSeq 2000.

  Study phs000722

• Intercepting Progression from Pre-Invasive to Invasive Lung Adenocarcinoma

  An improved understanding of the biology of lung cancer is needed to intercept the disease at an early point in its progression. In this project we have used multidimensional methods to profile the tumor microenvironment (TME) and to determine the crosstalk between cancer cells and the TME in pre-invasive to invasive human lung non-solid adenocarcinomas. Comparative analysis of the cellular and molecular events associated with the distinct histological stages will lead to identification of the critical events triggering progression and thereby identify targets to intercept disease progression. The data being submitted represents the genomic profiles of patient samples with pre-invasive and invasive human lung adenocarcinomas.

  Study phs002818

• Maternal-Fetal Immune Responses in Preterm Labor and Congenital Anomalies

  The purpose of this study is to provide a reference profile of small extracellular RNAs in body fluids. These samples were originally obtained in a study that had a different purpose. The purpose of the original study was to learn and understand more about the causes of preterm labor, how to prevent it, and how to treat it. What the researchers learn by studying tissue, cells, and/or fluid (including blood samples, amniotic fluid, and placental tissue) may help to prevent preterm labor and prevent preterm delivery, which will improve the prenatal care women receive and improve the health of newborns.

  Study phs001693

• Linked Read Sequencing of Gastric Cancer Metastases for Complex SV Resolution

  In this study, linked read sequencing was performed on two ovarian metastases and matched normal tissue, from a patient with primary diffuse gastric cancer. Linked read sequencing is a DNA preparation technology whereby high molecular weight molecules of DNA are uniquely barcoded prior to fragmentation and sequencing, thus retaining information about genomic contiguity. This study performed an extended analysis of linked read sequencing data to resolve the complex structures of structural variants in the cancer genomes. Complex structural rearrangements were identified in the genomic region surrounding the known oncogene FGFR2, and the association between FGFR2 and gastric cancer metastasis was demonstrated in an organoid model.

  Study phs001362

• Loss of IFN-gamma Signaling in Tumor Cells Associates with Primary Resistance to Anti-CTLA-4 Therapy

  Antibody blockade of the inhibitory CTLA-4 pathway has led to clinical benefit in a subset of patients with metastatic melanoma. Anti-CTLA-4 enhances T cell responses, including production of IFN-γ, which is a critical cytokine for host immune responses. However, the role of IFN-γ signaling in tumor cells in the setting of anti-CTLA-4 therapy remains unknown. Here we demonstrate that, based upon exome sequencing data, patients identified as non-responders to anti-CTLA-4 (ipilimumab) harbor a much higher genomic defects in the IFN-γ pathway genes than melanoma patients who had clinical response to ipilimumab therapy.

  Study phs001257

• Comprehensive Analysis of the Immunogenomics of Triple Negative Breast Cancer Brain Metastases from LCCC1419

  Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive subset of breast cancer that lacks expression of the estrogen and progesterone receptors (ER and PR) and HER2. Nearly 50% of patients with advanced TNBC will develop brain metastases (BrM), commonly with progressive extracranial disease. Immunotherapy has shown promise in the treatment of advanced TNBC; however, the immunogenomics of BrM remains largely unknown. Thus, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of TNBC BrM and matched primary tumors to characterize the genomic and immune landscape of TNBC BrM to foster the development of immunotherapy strategies in this aggressive and clinically unmet disease.  

  Study phs002457

• Whole Exome Characterization of Squamous Cell Lung Cancers (Lung SQCC) from Appalachian Kentucky (APPKY)

  This is a pilot study of squamous cell lung cancer and matched normal tissue pairs collected (convenience sample) from patients from Central Appalachia, in Southeastern Kentucky. This study performed whole exome sequencing on tumor and matched normal DNA samples from 51 lung squamous cell carcinoma (SQCC) subjects from Appalachian Kentucky (AppKY). Somatic genomic alteration profiles were compared between the AppKY and TCGA SQCC cohorts. We found that IDH1 and PCMTD1 had higher mutation rates in AppKY versus TCGA. These findings suggest population differences in the genetics of lung SQCC between AppKY and US populations that have implications for personalized treatment for this disease.

  Study phs001651

• Spatiotemporal Transcriptome of the Human Brain

  Comprehensive knowledge about the spatiotemporal dynamics of the brain transcriptome is essential for a better understanding of neurodevelopment, sexual dimorphism, and evolution, as well as our increased susceptibility to certain brain disorders. We generated and analyzed genome-wide exon-level transcriptome data from 16 brain regions of 57 postmortem human brains, spanning from embryonic development to late adulthood and representing males and females of multiple ethnicities. We also performed genome-wide genotyping of 2.5 million SNPs and assessed genome normality for all donors. This study provides a comprehensive, publicly available dataset on the spatiotemporal human brain transcriptome and new insights into the transcriptional foundations of human neurodevelopment.

  Study phs000406

• Genome-Wide Environment Interaction Study on Neurodevelopment in Children from Mexico and Bangladesh

  Cognitive development is known to be highly heritable, but various genome wide association studies (GWAS) have failed to find common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) which can explain a large proportion of the variance in cognitive ability. We hypothesized that an interaction between genes and exposure to potentially toxic metals may account for some proportion of this missing heritability. We genotyped 749 infants in Mexico and 636 infants in Bangladesh. Criteria for inclusion into the study are given below. We then performed a Genome Wide Environmental Interaction Study (GWEIS) with neurodevelopment outcomes. There were 552,487 SNPs in common between the two cohorts.

  Study phs000996

• Prostate Cancer Genome Sequencing Project

  Prostate cancer is a prevalent cause of cancer morbidity and mortality in men. In order to characterize the full range of somatic mutations in protein-coding genes that may drive the growth of prostate cancer, we sequenced the exonic regions of genomic and tumor DNA from over 100 patients with high-risk primary prostate cancer. Using hybrid capture and paired end DNA sequencing, we identified mutations in several novel putative prostate cancer genes. We interrogated copy number changes across tumor genomes using high-density SNP arrays, and identified a molecular subtype of cancer characterized by mutation of the ubiquitin ligase subunit SPOP and copy number loss at specific genomic loci.

  Study phs000447

• A Phase I/IB Study of Ipilimumab or Nivolumab in Patients With Relapsed Hematologic Malignancies After Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

  Relapse after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is characterized by poor outcomes and novel therapeutic options are urgently needed. Immune checkpoint blockade using CTLA-4 and PD-1 blocking antibodies are a potential concept for reinstating a dormant graft-versus-leukemia (GvL) effect.This study investigated transcriptomic changes in biopsies obtained from patients who received immune checkpoint blockade for relapsed hematologic malignancy post-HSCT and elucidated transcriptional programs associated with successful reinvigoration of GvL. Differential gene expression analysis showed evidence of increased T cell infiltration in biopsies of responders to ipilimumab treatment and demonstrated shared gene programs between GvL and GvHD.

  Study phs002377

• Exploring the Genomic Dark Matter of Neurodevelopmental Disorders

  Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs) are a group of disorders that typically manifest early in development and may give rise to impaired cognition, communication, adaptive behavior, and psychomotor skills. This study aims to take a more comprehensive view into the genomic landscape of structural variants implicated in NDDs with intellectual disability (ID). We have evaluated the genome of families with a genetically unsolved severe NDD via optical genome mapping. This study identified likely pathogenic or pathogenic structural variants in known NDD genes, including BCL11A, OPHN1, PHF8, SON, and NFIA. Data is available in VCF format, following the standard filtering settings in Bionano Access and available as "variants_combine_filters_inMoleRefine1.vcf" files.

  Study phs002937

• My Pediatric and Adult Rare Tumor (MyPART) Natural History Study of Rare Solid Tumors

  The goal of this study is to comprehensively and longitudinally evaluate the natural history of patients with rare solid tumors or tumor predisposition syndromes, estimating and defining their clinical spectrum (e.g. disease course and survival). Clinical data, patient reported outcomes (PROs), and biospecimen associated data are collected. Clinical data includes response to treatment, tumor pathology, and imaging. PROs include measures of pain, depression, anxiety, mobility, and cognitive functioning. Biospecimen data includes next-generation sequencing [RNAseq, whole exome sequencing (WES), whole genome sequencing (WGS), EPIC methylation array data, and TruSight Oncology 500 gene panel sequencing], cytokine analysis of plasma, immune phenotyping of circulating peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

  Study phs003143

• Maternal and Developmental Risks from Environmental and Social Stressors (MADRES) Center for Environmental Health Disparities

  MADRES is a prospective pregnancy cohort based in urban Los Angeles, recruiting predominantly low income Hispanic mothers-to-be as part of a children's health study, funded by Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO). Participants were measured for a number of chemical exposures and biomarkers. Two epigenetic markers will be available through dbGaP: miRNA expression in pregnancy (measured via Nanostring human assay, v3) and DNA methylation from pregnancy and children's cord blood (measured via EPIC array). Principal findings of this research described differences in miRNA expression profiles between early and late pregnancy, as well as miRNA expression affected by psychosocial stress.

  Study phs003194

• Collaborative Cohort of Cohorts for COVID-19 Research (C4R): Severe Asthma Research Program (SARP)

  Cohort Description The Severe Asthma Research Program (SARP) has been investigating the clinical, physiologic and molecular phenotypes of asthma since 2000. It is currently following ~400 deeply phenotyped asthma patients. Data Being Submitted Wave 1 questionnaire data includes 397 variables for up to 375 SARP participants in C4R.Wave 2 questionnaire data includes 448 variables for up to 289 SARP participants in C4R.Dried Blood Spot/Serosurvey data includes 7 variables for up to 290 SARP participants in C4R.Derived data includes 43 variables for up to 463 SARP participants in C4R.Phenotype data includes 113 variables for up to 463 SARP participants in C4R.

  Study phs002913

• BIRC5 Upregulation Enhances DNMT3A-Mutant T-ALL Cell Survival and Pathogenesis

  The goal of this study was to determine how patients with T-ALL who have DNA methyltransferase 3 alpha (DNMT3A) mutations develop resistance to therapy. Since DNMT3A is a methyltransferase, we examined the effect of those mutations on epigenetic regulation using whole genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS). We also assessed any changes in gene expression using RNA-sequencing. We found that T-ALL patients with DNMT3A mutations are resistant to apoptosis and some chemotherapies. WGBS showed that DNMT3A mutated patients clustered together by their epigenetic profile, which was associated with hypomethylation at TERT and HOX genes. RNA sequencing identified differences in JAK/STAT signaling.

  Study phs003623

• Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (Echocardiogram Image Repository)

  The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) is a study of the characteristics of subclinical cardiovascular disease (disease detected non-invasively before it has produced clinical signs and symptoms) and the risk factors that predict progression to clinically overt cardiovascular disease or progression of the subclinical disease. MESA researchers study a diverse, population-based sample of 6,814 asymptomatic men and women aged 45-84. Thirty-eight percent of the recruited participants are white, 28 percent African-American, 22 percent Hispanic, and 12 percent Asian, predominantly of Chinese descent. Echocardiogram Image Repository includes Echocardiogram Images performed during MESA Exam 6 conducted between 2016 and 2018.

  Study phs003702

• Chromothripsis in Small Cell Lung Carcinoma Associated with Carcinoid Transformation

  Small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) is typically associated with tobacco exposure and inactivation of RB1 and TP53 genes. We performed detailed clinicopathologic, genomic, and transcriptomic profiling of an atypical subset of SCLC in never/light smokers that lacked RB1 and TP53 co-inactivation and found that most cases were associated with chromothripsis – massive, localized chromosome shattering, recurrently involving chromosomes 11 or 12, among other findings. Uniquely, these clinically aggressive tumors exhibited genomic and pathologic links to pulmonary carcinoids. Conversely, SCLC never smokers harboring inactivated RB1 and TP53 exhibited hallmarks of adenocarcinoma-to-SCLC derivation, supporting two distinct pathways of plasticity-mediated pathogenesis of SCLC in never smokers.

  Study phs003676

• Systematic immune cell dysregulation and molecular subtypes revealed by single cell RNA-seq of subjects with type 1 diabetes

  Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is a prototypic endocrine autoimmune disease resulting from an immune-mediated destruction of pancreatic insulin-secreting beta-cells. A comprehensive immune cell phenotype evaluation in T1DM has not been performed thus far at the single. In this cross-sectional analysis, we generated a single-cell transcriptomic dataset of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from 46 manifest T1DM (Stage 3) cases and 31 matched controls.Our study reveals a surprisingly strong systemic dimension at the level of immune cell network in T1DM, defines disease-relevant molecular subtypes and has the potential to guide non-invasive test development and patient stratification.

  Study EGAS50000000231

• Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) biopsies show heterogeneity in gene expression profiles, genetic subtypes, and in vitro drug sensitivity to kinase inhibitors

  Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) is an aggressive large B-cell lymphoma, most often of the activated B cell (ABC) subtype, but with limited tumor biology studies due to small biopsy size and lack of strict cohort definition. Here we examined the genetic heterogeneity of 29 HIV- EBV- PCNSL tumors using whole exome sequencing (WES). We compared these tumors to 5 cell lines comprised of two human PCNSL cell lines (TK and HKBML) and three systemic activated B-cell-like diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (ABC-DLBCL) (OCI-Ly3, TMD-8, HBL-1).

  Study EGAS50000000312

• Epigenomic atlas of organoid development

  To investigfate the epigenomic basis of fate decisions in the central nerveous system, we recorded a epigenomic timecourse of human brain organoid development using Cut&Tag with paired scRNA-seq. We further performed perturbation experiment inhibiting EED and profiled the response with scRNA-seq and Cut&Tag. Finally, we profiled a sample of the developing human brain using multiome sequencing and Cut&Tag. In our study, we uncover epigenomic switches during brain region diversification and show that epigenetic activation precedes gene expression during neurogenesis in organoids and in primary tissue. Lastly, we show that transcriptional repression by H3K27me3 is required to stabilize neuroectoderm induction from pluripotency.

  Study EGAS50000000155

• Mitochondrial DNA mosaicism in human somatic cells

  Genomic alterations accumulate in the somatic cells throughout an individual’s lifetime. Recent sequencing studies have documented widespread mutations in the nuclear genome and the frequent clonal competition of normal cells carrying mutations. However, the landscape of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) heteroplasmy in normal human tissues is poorly understood. This study investigated the whole genome sequences (WGSs) of 2,096 clones established from non-neoplastic healthy single cells obtained from 31 donors. In addition, we analyzed 31 WGSs of neoplastic cells, including 12 clones established from adenomatous polyps from one individual with MUTYH-associated polyposis and 19 matched colorectal carcinomas from individuals who donated normal colorectal clones.

  Study EGAS50000000254

• IκBε deficiency accelerates disease development in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

  The NFKBIE gene, which encodes the NF-κB inhibitor IκBε, is mutated in 3-7% of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). The most recurrent alteration is a 4-bp frameshift deletion associated with NF-κB activation in leukemic B cells and poor clinical outcome. To study the functional consequences of NFKBIE gene inactivation, both in vitro and in vivo, we engineered CLL B cells and CLL-prone mice to stably down-regulate NFKBIE expression and investigated its role in controlling NF-κB activity and disease expansion. We found that IκBε loss leads to NF-κB pathway activation and promotes both migration and proliferation of CLL cells in a dose-dependent manner. Importantly, NFKBIE inactivation was sufficient to induce a more rapid expansion of the CLL clone in lymphoid organs and contributed to the development of an aggressive disease with a shortened survival in both xenografts and genetically modified mice. IκBε deficiency was associated with an alteration of the MAPK pathway, also confirmed by RNA-sequencing in NFKBIE-mutated patient samples, and resistance to the BTK inhibitor ibrutinib. In summary, our work underscores the multimodal relevance of the NF-κB pathway in CLL and paves the way to translate these findings into novel therapeutic options.

  Dataset EGAD50000000754

• HSC_population_dynamics___PX001_samples

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

  Study EGAS00001004146

• HSC_population_dynamics___KX009_samples

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

  Study EGAS00001004580

• HSC_population_dynamics___KX010_samples

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

  Study EGAS00001004581

• Single-cell spatiotranscriptomic dissection of ex vivo human heart right atrial appendage and pericardial fluid in ischemic heart disease and heart failure

  We use cardiac and pericardial fluid biopsies collected during open-heart surgery in control, ischemic heart disease, heart failure, and myocardial infarction context. For each sample, single-nuclei RNA sequencing experiment is performed. We also perform spatial transcriptomics on the heart samples. We annotate the cells in major cell types, in addition to subtypes annotation of vascular and immune cells. The disease annotation enables us to reveal substantial differences in gene expression at the cell subpopulation levels. Our results demonstrate the importance of high-resolution cellular type/state mapping in the elucidation of human cardiovascular disease pathogenesis.

  Study EGAS50000000653

• Genomic analysis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma upon acquired resistance to cetuximab

  Anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) monoclonal antibodies (cetuximab) remain the only FDA-approved targeted therapy for patients with recurrent/metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Unfortunately, most patients develop acquired resistance to cetuximab and there is currently no further therapeutic option for these patients (unmet clinical need), thereby highlighting the need to better understand resistance-causing mechanisms. Here, we carried out whole-exome sequencing on 2 cetuximab-sensitive and -resistant patient-derived xenograft models of HNSCC. Our data reveal several genetic alterations (mutations and copy number variations) associated with acquired resistance to anti-EGFR therapy.

  Study EGAS50000000800

• plasma DNA LINE-1 targeted bisulfite sequencing: a new non-invasive multi-cancer detection marker

  The detection of circulating tumor DNA, which allows non-invasive tumor molecular profiling and disease follow-up, promises optimal and individualized management of patients with cancer. However, detecting small fractions of tumor DNA released when the tumor burden is reduced remains a challenge. We developed a PCR-based targeted bisulfite method coupled to deep sequencing to detect methylation patterns of L1PA elements,which we named DIAMOND (for Detection of Long Interspersed Nuclear Element Altered Methylation ON plasma DNA). We used sodium bisulfite chemical conversion to achieve base-pair resolution analysis and designed a multiplexed PCR based on 8 amplicons covering L1PAs .

  Study EGAS50000000446

• Targeting EGFR in NF1 Mutant Melanoma

  Our study focused on melanoma patients with driver mutations in the neurofibromin 1 (NF1) tumor suppressor gene, a subset of melanoma patients that have not benefitted from recent treatment advances. We have leveraged patient-derived short-term cultures (STCs) and multiomics approaches to identify molecular features that could be developed into therapies for NF1 mutant melanoma patients. Our studies revealed that the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is highly expressed and active in NF1 mutant melanoma cells, and that genetic or pharmacological EGFR inhibition impaired tumor cell proliferation, survival, and cell growth in patient-derived NF1 mutant but not NF1 wild-type melanoma models.

  Study phs003906