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The Genomics of Pilocytic Astrocytoma Formation in Neurofibromatosis Type 1

Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) inherited cancer predisposition syndrome is one of the most common autosomal dominant tumor predisposition syndromes in which affected individuals develop brain tumors. These low-grade glial neoplasms (pilocytic astrocytomas) typically arise in children younger than 7 years of age and are hypothesized to result from a combination of germline and acquired somatic NF1 tumor suppressor gene mutations. In this study, whole genome sequence analysis was performed on three NF1-associated pilocytic astrocytoma tumors (NF1-PA) and matched normal blood samples to establish the genomic landscape of NF1-PA. These data support the existence of multiple distinct mechanisms (mutation, LOH, and methylation) underlying somatic NF1 inactivation in NF1-PA tumors.