16504 results for "sec+and+unspecified+malignant+neoplasm"

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• Tumor-reactive heterotypic CD8 T cell clusters from clinical samples

  Emerging evidence suggests a correlation between CD8+ T cell-tumor cell proximity and anti-tumor immune response. However, it remains unknown whether these cells exist as functional clusters that can be isolated from clinical samples. By conventional and imaging flow cytometry, we show here that from 21/21 human melanoma metastases, we could isolate heterotypic clusters, comprising CD8+ T cells interacting with one or more tumor cells and/or antigen-presenting cells (APCs). Single-cell RNA-sequencing revealed that T cells from clusters were enriched for gene signatures associated with tumor reactivity and exhaustion. Clustered T cells exhibited increased TCR clonality indicative of expansion, while TCR-matched T cells showed more exhaustion and co-modulation when conjugated to APCs than to tumor cells. T cells that were expanded from clusters ex vivo exerted on average 9-fold increased killing activity towards autologous melanomas, which was accompanied by enhanced cytokine production. Upon adoptive cell transfer into mice, T cells from clusters showed improved patient-derived melanoma control, which was associated with increased T cell infiltration and activation. Together, these results demonstrate that tumor-reactive CD8+ T cells are enriched in functional clusters with tumor cells and/or APCs and that they can be isolated and expanded from clinical samples. Typically excluded by single cell gating in flow cytometry, these distinct heterotypic T cell clusters serve as a valuable source to decipher functional tumor-immune cell interactions, while they may also be therapeutically explored.

  Study EGAS50000000785

• Persistent STAG2 mutation in recurrent pediatric glioblastoma

  Similar to their adult counterparts, the prognosis for pediatric patients with high-grade gliomas remains poor. At time of recurrence, treatment options are limited and remain without consensus. This report describes the genetic findings, obtained from whole exome sequencing of a pediatric patient with glioblastoma who underwent multiple surgical resections and treatment with standard chemoradiation, as well as a novel recombinant poliovirus vaccine therapy. Strikingly, despite the variety of treatments, there was persistence of a tumor clone, characterized by a deleterious STAG2 mutation, whose deficiency in pre-clinical studies can cause aneuploidy and aberrant mitotic progression, but remains understudied in the clinical setting. There was near elimination of an EGFR mutated and amplified tumor clone after gross total resection, standard chemoradiation, and poliovirus therapy, followed by the emergence of a persistently STAG2 mutated clone, with rare mutations in PTPN11 and BRAF, the latter composed of a novel deleterious mutation previously not reported in pediatric glioblastoma (p.D594G). This was accompanied by a mutation signature shift towards one characterized by increased DNA damage repair defects, consistent with the known underlying STAG2 deficiency. As such, this case represents a novel report following the clinical and genetic progression of a STAG2 mutated glioblastoma, including treatment with a novel and emerging immunotherapy. Although STAG2 deficiency comprises only a small subset of gliomas, this case adds clinical evidence to existing pre-clinical data supporting a role for STAG2 mutations in tumor formation and resistance to standard therapies.

  Study EGAS00001004340

• Massively parallel nanowell-based single-cell gene expression profiling

  Technological advances have enabled transcriptome characterization of cell types at the single-cell level providing new biological insights. New methods that enable simple yet high-throughput single-cell expression profiling are highly desirable. Here we report a novel nanowell-based single-cell RNA sequencing system, ICELL8, which enables processing of thousands of cells per sample. The system employs a 5184-nanowell-containing microchip to capture ~1300 single cells and process them. Each nanowell contains preprinted oligonucleotides encoding poly-d(T), a unique well barcode, and a unique molecular identifier. The ICELL8 system uses imaging software to identify nanowells containing viable single cells and only wells with single cells are processed into sequencing libraries. Here, we report the performance and utility of ICELL8 using samples of increasing complexity from cultured cells to mouse solid tissue samples. Our assessment of the system to discriminate between mixed human and mouse cells showed that ICELL8 has a low cell multiplet rate (< 3%) and low cross-cell contamination. We characterized single-cell transcriptomes of more than a thousand cultured human and mouse cells as well as 468 mouse pancreatic islets cells. We were able to identify distinct cell types in pancreatic islets, including alpha, beta, delta and gamma cells. Overall, ICELL8 provides efficient and cost-effective single-cell expression profiling of thousands of cells, allowing researchers to decipher single-cell transcriptomes within complex biological samples.

  Study EGAS00001002320

• Genome of the Netherlands

  The Genome of the Netherlands (GoNL) Project characterizes DNA sequence variation, common and rare, for SNVs, short insertions and deletions (indels) and larger deletions in 769 individuals of Dutch ancestry selected from five biobanks under the auspices of the Dutch hub of the Biobanking and Biomolecular Research Infrastructure (BBMRI-NL). The samples come from a representative sample of 250 trio-families from all provinces in the Netherlands. The parent-offspring trios include adult individuals ranging in age from 19 to 87 years (mean=53 years; SD=16 years) from birth cohorts 1910-1994. Sequencing was done on blood-derived DNA from uncultured cells and accomplished coverage was 14-15x. Samples where contributed by LifeLines (http://lifelines.nl/lifelines-research/general), The Leiden Longevity Study (http://www.healthy-ageing.nl; http://www.langleven.net), The Netherlands Twin Registry (NTR: http://www.tweelingenregister. org), The Rotterdam studies, (http://www.erasmus-epidemiology.nl/rotterdamstudy) and the Genetic Research in Isolated Populations program (http://www.epib.nl/research/geneticepi/research.html#gip). The sequencing was carried out in collaboration with the Beijing Institute for Genomics (BGI). The analysis was done by a consortium lead by UMCG, LUMC, Erasmus MC, VU university and UMCU, see http://www.nlgenome.nl. Funding for the project was provided by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research under award number 184021007, dated July 9, 2009 and made available as a Rainbow Project of the Biobanking and Biomolecular Research Infrastructure Netherlands (BBMRI-NL).

  Study EGAS00001000644

• Successful BRAF/MEK-inhibition in a young patient with BRAF V600E-mutated extrapancreatic acinar cell carcinoma (HIPO-021)

  Pancreatic acinar cell carcinoma (PAC) is a rare disease with a poor prognosis. Treatment options for metastatic PAC are limited and often follow chemotherapeutic regimens for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. Although recurrent genomic alterations, such as BRAF fusions and defects in genes involved in homologous recombination DNA repair, have been described in PAC, data on the clinical efficacy of molecularly guided, targeted treatment are scarce. Here we describe the case of a 27-yr-old patient with BRAF V600E-mutated PAC who was successfully treated with a combination of BRAF and MEK inhibitors. The patient presented to our clinic with abdominal pain and weight loss. Imaging showed extensive retroperitoneal disease as well as mediastinal lymphadenopathy. Because of elevated alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) levels and inconclusive histologic findings, a germ cell tumor was suspected; however, PEI chemotherapy was unsuccessful. A repeat biopsy yielded the diagnosis of PAC and treatment with FOLFIRINOX was initiated. Comprehensive molecular profiling within the MASTER (Molecularly Aided Stratification for Tumor Eradication Research) precision oncology program revealed a somatic BRAF V600E mutation and a germline PALB2 stop-gain mutation. Therapy was therefore switched to BRAF/MEK inhibition, resulting in almost complete remission and disease control for 12 mo and a remarkable improvement in the patient's general condition. These results indicate that BRAF alterations are a valid therapeutic target in PAC that should be routinely assessed in this patient population.

  Study EGAS00001004282

• UK10K NEURO ASD BIONED

  In the UK10K project we propose a series of complementary genetic approaches to find new low frequency/rare variants contributing to disease phenotypes. These will be based on obtaining the genome wide sequence of 4000 samples from the TwinsUK and ALSPAC cohorts (at 6x sequence coverage), and the exome sequence (protein coding regions and related conserved sequence) of 6000 samples selected for extreme phenotypes. Our studies will focus primarily on cardiovascular-related quantitative traits, obesity and related metabolic traits, neurodevelopmental disorders and a limited number of extreme clinical phenotypes that will provide proof-of-concept for future familial trait sequencing. We will analyse directly quantitative traits in the cohorts and the selected traits in the extreme samples, and also use imputation down to 0.1% allele frequency to extend the analyses to further sample sets with genome wide genotype data. In each case we will investigate indels and larger structural variants as well as SNPs, and use statistical methods that combine rare variants in a locus or pathway as well as single-variant approaches. The BioNED (Biomarkers for Childhood onset neuropsychiatric disorders) study has been carrying out detailed phenotypic assessments evaluating children with an autism spectrum disorder. These assessments included ADI-R, ADOS, neuropsychology, EEG etc. There are 56 DNA samples from this study (25 extracted from blood). For further information with regard to this cohort please contact Patrick Bolton (patrick.bolton@kcl.ac.uk).

  Study EGAS00001000111

• UK10K NEURO ASD GALLAGHER

  In the UK10K project we propose a series of complementary genetic approaches to find new low frequency/rare variants contributing to disease phenotypes. These will be based on obtaining the genome wide sequence of 4000 samples from the TwinsUK and ALSPAC cohorts (at 6x sequence coverage), and the exome sequence (protein coding regions and related conserved sequence) of 6000 samples selected for extreme phenotypes. Our studies will focus primarily on cardiovascular-related quantitative traits, obesity and related metabolic traits, neurodevelopmental disorders and a limited number of extreme clinical phenotypes that will provide proof-of-concept for future familial trait sequencing. We will analyse directly quantitative traits in the cohorts and the selected traits in the extreme samples, and also use imputation down to 0.1% allele frequency to extend the analyses to further sample sets with genome wide genotype data. In each case we will investigate indels and larger structural variants as well as SNPs, and use statistical methods that combine rare variants in a locus or pathway as well as single-variant approaches. This is an Irish sample set of individuals with ASD (approximately 50% with comorbid intellectual disability). Individuals have been diagnosed with ADI/ ADOS, measures of cognition/ adaptive function. They represent a more severe, narrowly defined cohort of ASD subjects. Family histories are available for some with measures of broader phenotype. For further information on this cohort please contact Nadia Bolshakova (bolshakn@tcd.ie).

  Study EGAS00001000112

• Whole Tumor spatial heterogeneity in metastatic melanoma

  Heterogeneous inter-tumoral responses, sustained periods of apparent clinical benefit despite lack of objective response to various therapies, and even spontaneous remission are well known within a subpopulation of advanced melanoma patients. The molecular and cellular dynamics facilitating long-term survival remain poorly defined, particularly in the current era ofexposure to multiple potentially active therapies. We studied an exceptional case of long-term survival in a patient with non-responding metastatic melanoma in order to characterize the clonal and microenvironmental factors.We performed immunogenomic analysis of 3 metachronous tumors, and of 67 intratumor sub-regions of one metastatic lesion, usingwhole exome sequencing, RNA-sequencing, immunohistochemistry, and T cell receptor sequencing. Longitudinal analysesidentified mutations in severalknownresistance genes affecting distinctmetastases. Intra-tumoral immune signatures revealed spatially-distinct pockets of immune activation and suppression throughout the metastasis. A specific T cell VBeta CDR3 rearrangement was identified as both dominant and recurrent not only across multiple spatial points within a single tumor mass, but also across metachronous tumors spanning the patient’s disease course. Immunophenotyping of this T cell population with single-cell sequencingsuggestedrepeatedT-cell priming events leading to the persistence of both activated and exhausted T cells bearing this same TCR-Beta at any given time.Our findings highlight genomic and immune heterogeneityin metastatic disease, extending to the intra-tumoral leveland provide a rationale for integrative spatiotemporal analysis of metastatic lesions in the context of immune checkpoint blockade.

  Study EGAS00001003292

• 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

• The Southern African Human Genome Programme

  The Southern African Human Genome Programme (SAHGP) is a national and regional initiative that aims to unlock the unique genetic character of southern African populations. Its vision is to improve quality of life through understanding human genetic diversity. It is timely to advance the SAHGP initiative since global genomic initiatives are increasingly pointing to populations in Africa, more specifically the San and Khoe from southern Africa, as harbouring the most ancient genetic signatures among the living populations of the world. Studies on African populations have already generated a wealth of information upon which the SAHGP can build. This information will be used to promote and support genomic research programmes both nationally and regionally to address critical questions that would benefit the people of our region. The SAHGP aims to make a significant contribution to the understanding of DNA variation among southern Africans and how this impacts on the health of the people of this region. Aims of the SAHGP: To develop capacity for genomic research in southern Africa; To establish sustainable resources for genomic research in the region; and To translate knowledge and information into improvements in human health in the region. The objective is to derive the maximum benefit from the SAHGP, and that the data should be widely shared with the scientific community for the benefit of the people of the sub-continent and beyond.

  Study EGAS00001002639