Medical Genetics Commons^™

Antiviral Medications For Preventing Cytomegalovirus Disease In Solid Organ Transplant Recipients, Robin Wm Vernooij, Mini Michael, Maleeka Ladhani, Angela C Webster, Giovanni Fm Strippoli, Jonathan C Craig, Elisabeth M Hodson

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: The risk of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in solid organ transplant recipients has resulted in the frequent use of prophylaxis to prevent the clinical syndrome associated with CMV infection. This is an update of a review first published in 2005 and updated in 2008 and 2013.

Objectives: To determine the benefits and harms of antiviral medications to prevent CMV disease and all-cause death in solid organ transplant recipients.

Search methods: We contacted the information specialist and searched the Cochrane Kidney and Transplant Register of Studies up to 5 February 2024 using search terms relevant to this review. Studies in the …

Using Genome And Transcriptome Data From African-Ancestry Female Participants To Identify Putative Breast Cancer Susceptibility Genes, Jie Ping, Guochong Jia, Qiuyin Cai, Xingyi Guo, Ran Tao, Christine Ambrosone, Dezheng Huo, Stefan Ambs, Mollie E Barnard, Yu Chen, Montserrat Garcia-Closas, Jian Gu, Jennifer J Hu, Esther M John, Christopher I Li, Katherine Nathanson, Barbara Nemesure, Olufunmilayo I Olopade, Tuya Pal, Michael F Press, Maureen Sanderson, Dale P Sandler, Toshio Yoshimatsu, Prisca O Adejumo, Thomas Ahearn, Abenaa M Brewster, Anselm J M Hennis, Timothy Makumbi, Paul Ndom, Katie M O'Brien, Andrew F Olshan, Mojisola M Oluwasanu, Sonya Reid, Song Yao, Ebonee N Butler, Maosheng Huang, Atara Ntekim, Bingshan Li, Melissa A Troester, Julie R Palmer, Christopher A Haiman, Jirong Long, Wei Zheng

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

African-ancestry (AA) participants are underrepresented in genetics research. Here, we conducted a transcriptome-wide association study (TWAS) in AA female participants to identify putative breast cancer susceptibility genes. We built genetic models to predict levels of gene expression, exon junction, and 3' UTR alternative polyadenylation using genomic and transcriptomic data generated in normal breast tissues from 150 AA participants and then used these models to perform association analyses using genomic data from 18,034 cases and 22,104 controls. At Bonferroni-corrected P < 0.05, we identified six genes associated with breast cancer risk, including four genes not previously reported (CTD-3080P12.3, EN1, LINC01956 and NUP210L). Most of these genes showed a stronger association with risk of estrogen-receptor (ER) negative or triple-negative than ER-positive breast cancer. We also replicated the associations with 29 genes reported in previous TWAS at P < 0.05 (one-sided), providing further support for an association of these genes with breast cancer risk. Our study sheds new light on the genetic basis of breast cancer and highlights the value of conducting research in AA populations.

Mdm2 Inhibitors For Cancer Therapy: The Past, Present, And Future, Wei Wang, Najah Albadari, Yi Du, Josef F Fowler, Hannah T Sang, Wa Xian, Frank Mckeon, Wei Li, Jia Zhou, Ruiwen Zhang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Since its discovery over 35 years ago, MDM2 has emerged as an attractive target for the development of cancer therapy. MDM2's activities extend from carcinogenesis to immunity to the response to various cancer therapies. Since the report of the first MDM2 inhibitor more than 30 years ago, various approaches to inhibit MDM2 have been attempted, with hundreds of small-molecule inhibitors evaluated in preclinical studies and numerous molecules tested in clinical trials. Although many MDM2 inhibitors and degraders have been evaluated in clinical trials, there is currently no Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved MDM2 inhibitor on the market. Nevertheless, there are …

Tsyn-Seq: A T-Cell Synapse-Based Antigen Identification Platform, Yimei Jin, Takahiko Miyama, Alexandria Brown, Tomo Hayase, Xingzhi Song, Anand K Singh, Licai Huang, Ivonne I Flores, Lauren K Mcdaniel, Israel Glover, Taylor M Halsey, Rishika Prasad, Valerie Chapa, Saira Ahmed, Jianhua Zhang, Kunal Rai, Christine B Peterson, Gregory Lizee, Jennifer Karmouch, Eiko Hayase, Jeffrey J Molldrem, Chia-Chi Chang, Wen-Bin Tsai, Robert R Jenq

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Tools for genome-wide rapid identification of peptide-major histocompatibility complex targets of T-cell receptors (TCR) are not yet universally available. We present a new antigen screening method, the T-synapse (Tsyn) reporter system, which includes antigen-presenting cells (APC) with a Fas-inducible NF-κB reporter and T cells with a nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) reporter. To functionally screen for target antigens from a cDNA library, productively interacting T cell-APC aggregates were detected by dual-reporter activity and enriched by flow sorting followed by antigen identification quantified by deep sequencing (Tsyn-seq). When applied to a previously characterized TCR specific for the E7 antigen …

Fam86a Methylation Of Eef2 Links Mrna Translation Elongation To Tumorigenesis, Joel William Francis, Simone Hausmann, Sabeen Ikram, Kunlun Yin, Robert Mealey-Farr, Natasha Mahealani Flores, Annie Truc Trinh, Tourkian Chasan, Julia Thompson, Pawel Karol Mazur, Or Gozani

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

eEF2 post-translational modifications (PTMs) can profoundly affect mRNA translation dynamics. However, the physiologic function of eEF2K525 trimethylation (eEF2K525me3), a PTM catalyzed by the enzyme FAM86A, is unknown. Here, we find that FAM86A methylation of eEF2 regulates nascent elongation to promote protein synthesis and lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) pathogenesis. The principal physiologic substrate of FAM86A is eEF2, with K525me3 modeled to facilitate productive eEF2-ribosome engagement during translocation. FAM86A depletion in LUAD cells causes 80S monosome accumulation and mRNA translation inhibition. FAM86A is overexpressed in LUAD and eEF2K525me3 levels increase through advancing LUAD disease stages. FAM86A knockdown attenuates LUAD cell proliferation and suppression …

The Clinical Utility And Diagnostic Implementation Of Human Subject Cell Transdifferentiation Followed By Rna Sequencing, Shenglan Li, Sen Zhao, Jefferson C Sinson, Aleksandar Bajic, Jill A Rosenfeld, Matthew B Neeley, Mezthly Pena, Kim C Worley, Lindsay C Burrage, Monika Weisz-Hubshman, Shamika Ketkar, William J Craigen, Gary D Clark, Seema Lalani, Carlos A Bacino, Keren Machol, Hsiao-Tuan Chao, Lorraine Potocki, Lisa Emrick, Jennifer Sheppard, My T T Nguyen, Anahita Khoramnia, Paula Patricia Hernandez, Sandesh Cs Nagamani, Zhandong Liu, Christine M Eng, Brendan Lee, Pengfei Liu

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) has recently been used in translational research settings to facilitate diagnoses of Mendelian disorders. A significant obstacle for clinical laboratories in adopting RNA-seq is the low or absent expression of a significant number of disease-associated genes/transcripts in clinically accessible samples. As this is especially problematic in neurological diseases, we developed a clinical diagnostic approach that enhanced the detection and evaluation of tissue-specific genes/transcripts through fibroblast-to-neuron cell transdifferentiation. The approach is designed specifically to suit clinical implementation, emphasizing simplicity, cost effectiveness, turnaround time, and reproducibility. For clinical validation, we generated induced neurons (iNeurons) from 71 individuals with primary …

The Prognostic Value Of Mek Pathway-Associated Estrogen Receptor Signaling Activity For Female Cancers, Chun Wai Ng, Yvonne T M Tsang, David M Gershenson, Kwong-Kwok Wong

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Other than for breast cancer, endocrine therapy has not been highly effective for gynecologic cancers. Endocrine therapy resistance in estrogen receptor positive gynecologic cancers is still poorly understood. In this retrospective study, we examined the estrogen receptor (ER) signaling pathway activities of breast, ovarian, endometrial, and cervical cancers to identify those that may predict endocrine therapy responsiveness.

Methods: Clinical and genomic data of women with breast and gynecological cancers were downloaded from cBioPortal for Cancer Genomics. Estrogen receptor alpha (ESR1) expression level and sample-level pathway enrichment scores (EERES) were calculated to classify patients into four groups (low/high ESR1 and …

Noninferiority Of Hypofractionated Vs Conventional Postprostatectomy Radiotherapy For Genitourinary And Gastrointestinal Symptoms: The Nrg-Gu003 Phase 3 Randomized Clinical Trial, Mark K Buyyounouski, Stephanie L Pugh, Ronald C Chen, Mark J Mann, Rajat J Kudchadker, Andre A Konski, Omar Y Mian, Jeff M Michalski, Eric Vigneault, Richard K Valicenti, Maroie Barkati, Colleen A F Lawton, Louis Potters, Drew C Monitto, Jeffrey A Kittel, Thomas M Schroeder, Raquibul Hannan, Casey E Duncan, Joseph P Rodgers, Felix Feng, Howard M Sandler

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Importance: No prior trial has compared hypofractionated postprostatectomy radiotherapy (HYPORT) to conventionally fractionated postprostatectomy (COPORT) in patients primarily treated with prostatectomy.

Objective: To determine if HYPORT is noninferior to COPORT for patient-reported genitourinary (GU) and gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms at 2 years.

Design, setting, and participants: In this phase 3 randomized clinical trial, patients with a detectable prostate-specific antigen (PSA; ≥0.1 ng/mL) postprostatectomy with pT2/3pNX/0 disease or an undetectable PSA (< 0.1 ng/mL) with either pT3 disease or pT2 disease with a positive surgical margin were recruited from 93 academic, community-based, and tertiary medical sites in the US and Canada. Between June 2017 and July 2018, a total of 296 patients were randomized. Data were analyzed in December 2020, with additional analyses occurring after as needed.

Intervention: Patients were randomized to receive 62.5 Gy in 25 fractions (HYPORT) or 66.6 Gy in 37 fractions (COPORT).

Main outcomes and measures: The coprimary end points were the 2-year …

A Randomized Trial Of Two Remote Health Care Delivery Models On The Uptake Of Genetic Testing And Impact On Patient-Reported Psychological Outcomes In Families With Pancreatic Cancer: The Genetic Education, Risk Assessment, And Testing (Generate) Study, Nicolette J Rodriguez, C Sloane Furniss, Matthew B Yurgelun, Chinedu Ukaegbu, Pamela E Constantinou, Ileana Fortes, Alyson Caruso, Alison N Schwartz, Jill E Stopfer, Meghan Underhill-Blazey, Barbara Kenner, Scott H Nelson, Sydney Okumura, Alicia Y Zhou, Tara B Coffin, Hajime Uno, Miki Horiguchi, Allyson J Ocean, Florencia Mcallister, Andrew M Lowy, Alison P Klein, Lisa Madlensky, Gloria M Petersen, Judy E Garber, Scott M Lippman, Michael G Goggins, Anirban Maitra, Sapna Syngal

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background & aims: Genetic testing uptake for cancer susceptibility in family members of patients with cancer is suboptimal. Among relatives of patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), The GENetic Education, Risk Assessment, and TEsting (GENERATE) study evaluated 2 online genetic education/testing delivery models and their impact on patient-reported psychological outcomes.

Methods: Eligible participants had ≥1 first-degree relative with PDAC, or ≥1 first-/second-degree relative with PDAC with a known pathogenic germline variant in 1 of 13 PDAC predisposition genes. Participants were randomized by family, between May 8, 2019, and June 1, 2021. Arm 1 participants underwent a remote interactive telemedicine session …

Somatic Gene Mutation Patterns And Burden Influence Outcomes With Enasidenib In Relapsed/Refractory Idh2-Mutated Aml, Alberto Risueño, Wendy L See, Iryna Bluemmert, Stéphane De Botton, Courtney D Dinardo, Amir T Fathi, Andre C Schuh, Pau Montesinos, Paresh Vyas, Thomas Prebet, Anita Gandhi, Maroof Hasan

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Limited treatment options are available for patients with relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia (R/R AML). We recently reported results from the phase 3 IDHENTIFY trial (NCT02577406) showing improved response rates and event-free survival with enasidenib monotherapy compared with conventional care regimens (CCR) in heavily pretreated, older patients with late-stage R/R AML bearing IDH2 mutations. Here we investigated the prognostic impact of mutational burden and different co-mutation patterns at study entry within the predominant IDH2 variant subclasses, IDH2-R140 and IDH2-R172. The prognostic relevance of these variants is well documented in newly diagnosed AML, but data are lacking in R/R AML. In this …

Supporting Career Development For Early- And Mid-Career Professionals Working In The Bipolar Disorder Field: Key Initiatives To Be Implemented By The International Society For Bipolar Disorders Early- And Mid-Career Committee, Katie M Douglas, Sarah H Sperry, Olivia M Dean, Gabriel R Fries, Fabiano A Gomes, Joanna Jiménez Pavón, Emma Morton, Rachel H B Mitchell, Tamsyn E Van Rheenen, Norma Verdolini, Ni Xu, Georgina M Hosang, Rebekah S Huber

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Management And Outcomes Of Patients With Refractory Solitary Plasmacytoma After Treatment With Definitive Radiation Therapy, Penny Fang, Chelsea C Pinnix, Susan Y Wu, Hans C Lee, Krina K Patel, Neeraj Saini, Melody R Becnel, Gregory Kaufman, Sheeba K Thomas, Robert Z Orlowski, Behrang Amini, Pei Lin, Bouthaina S Dabaja, Jillian R Gunther

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: Radiation therapy (RT) is the standard treatment for solitary plasmacytoma (SP); however, the optimal management of RT-refractory SPs is unknown. We examined outcomes after early systemic therapy, surgical resection, or observation for patients with RT-refractory disease and assessed the potential impact of treatment selection on disease outcomes.

Methods and materials: We retrospectively reviewed patients with SP treated with definitive radiation and evaluated at a single institution with persistent disease on imaging or biopsy. Descriptive statistics were used to characterize patient and disease characteristics and treatment outcomes.

Results: Of 102 total SP patients, 17 (17%) were RT-refractory. The median RT …

Intermittent Fasting And Its Impact On Toxicities, Symptoms And Quality Of Life In Patients On Active Cancer Treatment, Robert Li Sucholeiki, Casey L Propst, David S Hong, Goldy C George

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Intermittent fasting is a dietary intervention that is increasingly being tested for positive outcomes in patients receiving cancer treatment. In this review, we examine the impact of intermittent fasting on symptoms, toxicities, and quality of life in patients undergoing cancer therapy and highlight unmet investigative areas to prompt future research. While current evidence is preliminary and conclusions mixed, some promising clinical studies suggest that intermittent fasting interventions may improve fatigue and reduce gastrointestinal toxicities in certain patients with cancer. Emerging clinical evidence also demonstrates that intermittent fasting may reduce off-target DNA damage, and induce favorable cellular-level immune remodeling. Furthermore, intermittent …

Azacitidine, Venetoclax, And Gilteritinib In Newly Diagnosed And Relapsed Or Refractory Flt3-Mutated Aml, Nicholas J Short, Naval Daver, Courtney D Dinardo, Tapan Kadia, Lewis F Nasr, Walid Macaron, Musa Yilmaz, Gautam Borthakur, Guillermo Montalban-Bravo, Guillermo Garcia-Manero, Ghayas C Issa, Kelly S Chien, Elias Jabbour, Cedric Nasnas, Xuelin Huang, Wei Qiao, Jairo Matthews, Christopher J Stojanik, Keyur P Patel, Regina Abramova, Jennifer Thankachan, Marina Konopleva, Hagop Kantarjian, Farhad Ravandi

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: Azacitidine plus venetoclax is a standard of care for patients with newly diagnosed AML who are unfit for intensive chemotherapy. However, FLT3 mutations are a common mechanism of resistance to this regimen. The addition of gilteritinib, an oral FLT3 inhibitor, to azacitidine and venetoclax may improve outcomes in patients with FLT3-mutated AML.

Methods: This phase I/II study evaluated azacitidine, venetoclax, and gilteritinib in two cohorts: patients with (1) newly diagnosed FLT3-mutated AML who were unfit for intensive chemotherapy or (2) relapsed/refractory FLT3-mutated AML (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT04140487). The primary end points were the maximum tolerated dose …

Survival Disparities In Non-Hispanic Black And White Cervical Cancer Patients Vary By Histology And Are Largely Explained By Modifiable Factors, Calen W Kucera, Nicole P Chappell, Chunqiao Tian, Michael T Richardson, Christopher M Tarney, Chad A Hamilton, John K Chan, Daniel S Kapp, Charles A Leath, Yovanni Casablanca, Christine Rojas, Collin A Sitler, Lari Wenzel, Ann Klopp, Nathaniel L Jones, Rodney P Rocconi, John H Farley, Timothy D O'Connor, Craig D Shriver, Nicholas W Bateman, Thomas P Conrads, Neil T Phippen, G Larry Maxwell, Kathleen M Darcy

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: We investigated racial disparities in survival by histology in cervical cancer and examined the factors contributing to these disparities.

Methods: Non-Hispanic Black and non-Hispanic White (hereafter known as Black and White) patients with stage I-IV cervical carcinoma diagnosed between 2004 and 2017 in the National Cancer Database were studied. Survival differences were compared using Cox modeling to estimate hazard ratio (HR) or adjusted HR (AHR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). The contribution of demographic, socioeconomic and clinical factors to the Black vs White differences in survival was estimated after applying propensity score weighting in patients with squamous cell carcinoma …

Assessing The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Training At The Md Anderson Cancer Center Anatomical Pathology Fellowship Program, Yiannis P Dimopoulos, Donghyang Kwon, Denái R Milton, Paula I Iaeger, Donna E Hansel, Victor G Prieto, Kareen E Chin, Phyu P Aung

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Context: To provide high-quality, safe training during the COVID-19 pandemic, our anatomic pathology fellowship program implemented a hybrid virtual/in-person training model with supplemental digital material.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of this model.

Design: We examined Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education survey results and board pass rates for fellows before the pandemic (group 1); during the pandemic peak (group 2); and early and late after the pandemic peak (groups 3 and 4). Additionally, we distributed an online survey, including questions related to performance as attending physicians and fellowship experience, to recent graduates.

Results: Information loss during handover, supervision and …

Optimized Scoring Of End-To-End Dosimetry Audits For Passive Motion Management – A Simulation Study Using The Iroc Thorax Phantom, Alex Burton, Mathieu Gaudreault, Nicholas Hardcastle, Jessica Lye, Sabeena Beveridge, Stephen F Kry, Rick Franich

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Dosimetry audits for passive motion management require dynamically-acquired measurements in a moving phantom to be compared to statically calculated planned doses. This study aimed to characterise the relationship between planning and delivery errors, and the measured dose in the Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core (IROC) thorax phantom, to assess different audit scoring approaches. Treatment plans were created using a 4DCT scan of the IROC phantom, equipped with film and thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs). Plans were created on the average intensity projection from all bins. Three levels of aperture complexity were explored: dynamic conformal arcs (DCAT), low-, and high-complexity volumetric modulated arcs …

Updates On Who Classification For Small Round Cell Tumors: Ewing Sarcoma Vs Everything Else, Carina A Dehner, Alexander J Lazar, John S A Chrisinger

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The WHO Classification of Soft Tissue and Bone Tumours currently recognizes four categories of undifferentiated small round cell sarcoma: Ewing sarcoma, round cell sarcoma with EWSR1-non-ETS fusions including NFATc2 and PATZ1, CIC-rearranged sarcoma, and sarcoma with BCOR genetic alterations. These neoplasms frequently pose significant diagnostic challenges due to rarity and overlapping morphologic and immunohistochemical findings. Further, molecular testing, with accompanying pitfalls, may be needed to establish a definitive diagnosis. This review summarizes the clinical, histologic, immunohistochemical, and molecular features of these neoplasms. In addition, differential diagnosis and areas of uncertainty and ongoing investigation are discussed.

Automated, High-Throughput Platform To Generate A High-Reliability, Comprehensive Rectal Cancer Database, Neal Bhutiani, Mahmoud M G Yousef, Abdelrahman Yousef, Mohammad Zeineddine, Mark Knafl, Olivia Ratliff, Uditha P Fernando, Anastasia Turin, Fadl A Zeineddine, Jeff Jin, Kristin Alfaro-Munoz, Drew Goldstein, George J Chang, Scott Kopetz, John Paul Shen, Abhineet Uppal

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: Dynamic operations platforms allow for cross-platform data extraction, integration, and analysis, although application of these platforms to large-scale oncology enterprises has not been described. This study presents a pipeline for automated, high-fidelity extraction, integration, and validation of cross-platform oncology data in patients undergoing treatment for rectal cancer at a single, high-volume institution.

Methods: A dynamic operations platform was used to identify patients with rectal cancer treated at MD Anderson Cancer Center between 2016 and 2022 who had magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) imaging and preoperative treatment details available in the electronic health record (EHR). Demographic, clinicopathologic, tumor mutation, radiographic, and …

Genomic Landscape Of Lynch Syndrome Colorectal Neoplasia Identifies Shared Mutated Neoantigens For Immunoprevention, Ana M Bolivar, Fahriye Duzagac, Nan Deng, Laura Reyes-Uribe, Kyle Chang, Wenhui Wu, Charles M Bowen, Melissa W Taggart, Selvi Thirumurthi, Patrick M Lynch, Y Nancy You, Jesus Rodriguez-Pascual, Steven M Lipkin, Scott Kopetz, Paul Scheet, Gregory A Lizee, Alexandre Reuben, Krishna M Sinha, Eduardo Vilar

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background & aims: Lynch syndrome (LS) carriers develop mismatch repair-deficient neoplasia with high neoantigen (neoAg) rates. No detailed information on targetable neoAgs from LS precancers exists, which is crucial for vaccine development and immune-interception strategies. We report a focused somatic mutation and frameshift-neoAg landscape of microsatellite loci from colorectal polyps without malignant potential (PWOMP), precancers, and early-stage cancers in LS carriers.

Methods: We generated paired whole-exome and transcriptomic sequencing data from 8 colorectal PWOMP, 41 precancers, 8 advanced precancers, and 12 early-stage cancers of 43 LS carriers. A computational pipeline was developed to predict, rank, and prioritize the top 100 …

Cross-Vendor Multiparametric Mapping Of The Human Brain Using 3d-Qalas: A Multicenter And Multivendor Study, Shohei Fujita, Borjan Gagoski, Ken-Pin Hwang, Akifumi Hagiwara, Marcel Warntjes, Issei Fukunaga, Wataru Uchida, Yuya Saito, Towa Sekine, Rina Tachibana, Tomoya Muroi, Toshiya Akatsu, Akihiro Kasahara, Ryo Sato, Tsuyoshi Ueyama, Christina Andica, Koji Kamagata, Shiori Amemiya, Hidemasa Takao, Yasunobu Hoshino, Yuji Tomizawa, Kazumasa Yokoyama, Berkin Bilgic, Nobutaka Hattori, Osamu Abe, Shigeki Aoki

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: To evaluate a vendor-agnostic multiparametric mapping scheme based on 3D quantification using an interleaved Look-Locker acquisition sequence with a T2 preparation pulse (3D-QALAS) for whole-brain T1, T2, and proton density (PD) mapping.

Methods: This prospective, multi-institutional study was conducted between September 2021 and February 2022 using five different 3T systems from four prominent MRI vendors. The accuracy of this technique was evaluated using a standardized MRI system phantom. Intra-scanner repeatability and inter-vendor reproducibility of T1, T2, and PD values were evaluated in 10 healthy volunteers (6 men; mean age ± SD, 28.0 ± 5.6 y) who underwent scan-rescan sessions …

Mapping Genotypes To Chromatin Accessibility Profiles In Single Cells, Franco Izzo, Robert M Myers, Saravanan Ganesan, Levan Mekerishvili, Sanjay Kottapalli, Tamara Prieto, Elliot O Eton, Theo Botella, Andrew J Dunbar, Robert L Bowman, Jesus Sotelo, Catherine Potenski, Eleni P Mimitou, Maximilian Stahl, Sebastian El Ghaity-Beckley, Joann Arandela, Ramya Raviram, Daniel C Choi, Ronald Hoffman, Ronan Chaligné, Omar Abdel-Wahab, Peter Smibert, Irene M Ghobrial, Joseph M Scandura, Bridget Marcellino, Ross L Levine, Dan A Landau

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

In somatic tissue differentiation, chromatin accessibility changes govern priming and precursor commitment towards cellular fates1-3. Therefore, somatic mutations are likely to alter chromatin accessibility patterns, as they disrupt differentiation topologies leading to abnormal clonal outgrowth. However, defining the impact of somatic mutations on the epigenome in human samples is challenging due to admixed mutated and wild-type cells. Here, to chart how somatic mutations disrupt epigenetic landscapes in human clonal outgrowths, we developed genotyping of targeted loci with single-cell chromatin accessibility (GoT-ChA). This high-throughput platform links genotypes to chromatin accessibility at single-cell resolution across thousands of cells within a single assay. …

Genome-Wide Association Analyses Of Breast Cancer In Women Of African Ancestry Identify New Susceptibility Loci And Improve Risk Prediction, Guochong Jia, Jie Ping, Xingyi Guo, Yaohua Yang, Ran Tao, Bingshan Li, Stefan Ambs, Mollie E Barnard, Yu Chen, Montserrat Garcia-Closas, Jian Gu, Jennifer J Hu, Dezheng Huo, Esther M John, Christopher I Li, James L Li, Katherine L Nathanson, Barbara Nemesure, Olufunmilayo I Olopade, Tuya Pal, Michael F Press, Maureen Sanderson, Dale P Sandler, Xiao-Ou Shu, Melissa A Troester, Song Yao, Prisca O Adejumo, Thomas Ahearn, Abenaa M Brewster, Anselm J M Hennis, Timothy Makumbi, Paul Ndom, Katie M O'Brien, Andrew F Olshan, Mojisola M Oluwasanu, Sonya Reid, Ebonee N Butler, Maosheng Huang, Atara Ntekim, Huijun Qian, Haoyu Zhang, Christine B Ambrosone, Qiuyin Cai, Jirong Long, Julie R Palmer, Christopher A Haiman, Wei Zheng

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

We performed genome-wide association studies of breast cancer including 18,034 cases and 22,104 controls of African ancestry. Genetic variants at 12 loci were associated with breast cancer risk (P < 5 × 10-8), including associations of a low-frequency missense variant rs61751053 in ARHGEF38 with overall breast cancer (odds ratio (OR) = 1.48) and a common variant rs76664032 at chromosome 2q14.2 with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) (OR = 1.30). Approximately 15.4% of cases with TNBC carried six risk alleles in three genome-wide association study-identified TNBC risk variants, with an OR of 4.21 (95% confidence interval = 2.66-7.03) compared with those carrying fewer than two risk alleles. A polygenic risk score (PRS) showed an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.60 for the prediction of breast cancer risk, which outperformed PRS derived using data from females of European ancestry. Our study markedly increases the population diversity in genetic studies for breast cancer and demonstrates the utility of PRS for risk prediction in females of African ancestry.

Dynamics Of Karyotype Evolution, Elena Kuzmin, Toby M Baker, Peter Van Loo, Leon Glass

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

In the evolution of species, the karyotype changes with a timescale of tens to hundreds of thousand years. In the development of cancer, the karyotype often is modified in cancerous cells over the lifetime of an individual. Characterizing these changes and understanding the mechanisms leading to them has been of interest in a broad range of disciplines including evolution, cytogenetics, and cancer genetics. A central issue relates to the relative roles of random vs deterministic mechanisms in shaping the changes. Although it is possible that all changes result from random events followed by selection, many results point to other non-random …

Pet Imaging Of Metabolism, Perfusion, And Hypoxia: Fdg And Beyond, Austin R Pantel, Seong-Woo Bae, Elizabeth J Li, Sophia R O'Brien, H Charles Manning

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Imaging glucose metabolism with [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography has transformed the diagnostic and treatment algorithms of numerous malignancies in clinical practice. The cancer phenotype, though, extends beyond dysregulation of this single pathway. Reprogramming of other pathways of metabolism, as well as altered perfusion and hypoxia, also typifies malignancy. These features provide other opportunities for imaging that have been developed and advanced into humans. In this review, we discuss imaging metabolism, perfusion, and hypoxia in cancer, focusing on the underlying biology to provide context. We conclude by highlighting the ability to image multiple facets of biology to better characterize cancer and …

Benefit Of Axicabtagene Ciloleucel Versus Chemoimmunotherapy In Older Patients And/Or Patients With Poor Ecog Performance Status With Relapsed Or Refractory Large B-Cell Lymphoma After 2 Or More Lines Of Prior Therapy, Matthew A Lunning, Hai-Lin Wang, Zhen-Huan Hu, Frederick L Locke, Tanya Siddiqi, Caron A Jacobson, Sairah Ahmed, David B Miklos, Yi Lin, Brian T Hill, Armin Ghobadi, Sattva S Neelapu, Jason Westin, Chrisopher Dieyi, Polly Field, Harry Miao, Shilpa A Shahani, Anik Patel, Clare Spooner, Christine Fu, David Muramoto, Hairong Xu, Marcelo C Pasquini

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Axicabtagene ciloleucel (axi-cel) in trials has demonstrated favorable efficacy compared with historical controls after ≥2 lines of therapy for the treatment of relapsed or refractory (R/R) large B cell lymphoma (LBCL). Herein, we compared the real-world effectiveness of axi-cel with efficacy and effectiveness of chemoimmunotherapy (CIT) in patients aged ≥65 years and patients with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status (ECOG PS) of 2. A total of 1146 patients treated with commercial axi-cel for R/R LBCL with ≥2 lines of prior therapy were included from the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplantation Research prospective observational study, and 469 patients …

Artificial Intelligence-Powered Assessment Of Pathologic Response To Neoadjuvant Atezolizumab In Patients With Nsclc: Results From The Lcmc3 Study, Sanja Dacic, William D Travis, Jennifer M Giltnane, Filip Kos, John Abel, Stephanie Hilz, Junya Fujimoto, Lynette Sholl, Jon Ritter, Farah Khalil, Yi Liu, Amaro Taylor-Weiner, Murray Resnick, Hui Yu, Fred R Hirsch, Paul A Bunn, David P Carbone, Valerie Rusch, David J Kwiatkowski, Bruce E Johnson, Jay M Lee, Stephanie R Hennek, Ilan Wapinski, Alan Nicholas, Ann Johnson, Katja Schulze, Mark G Kris, Ignacio I Wistuba

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Introduction: Pathologic response (PathR) by histopathologic assessment of resected specimens may be an early clinical end point associated with long-term outcomes with neoadjuvant therapy. Digital pathology may improve the efficiency and precision of PathR assessment. LCMC3 (NCT02927301) evaluated neoadjuvant atezolizumab in patients with resectable NSCLC and reported a 20% major PathR rate.

Methods: We determined PathR in primary tumor resection specimens using guidelines-based visual techniques and developed a convolutional neural network model using the same criteria to digitally measure the percent viable tumor on whole-slide images. Concordance was evaluated between visual determination of percent viable tumor (n = …

Discovering Genetic Biomarkers For Targeted Cancer Therapeutics With Explainable Artificial Intelligence, Debaditya Chakraborty, Elizabeth Gutierrez-Chakraborty, Cristian Rodriguez-Aguayo, Hakan Başağaoğlu, Gabriel Lopez-Berestein, Paola Amero

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Survival Outcomes Of Patients With Her2/Neu-Positive Breast Cancer With Germline Brca Mutations, Fatma Nihan Akkoc Mustafayev, Mihir Amitabh Shukla, Amanda Lanier, Denái R Milton, Angelica M Gutierrez, Stephen K Gruschkus, John E Lewis, Rashmi K Murthy, Banu K Arun

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Breast cancer (BC) with germline BRCA1/2 mutations and their association with triple-negative BC has been thoroughly investigated. However, some carriers of BRCA1/2 mutations have human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2/neu)-positive BC, which has a different targeted therapy approach, and data are scarce for this patient population. The authors sought to characterize the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with HER2/neu-positive BC who had germline BRCA1/2 mutations.

Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of data from 1099 patients diagnosed with HER2/neu-positive BC who were screened for germline BRCA mutations between 1996 and 2022. Clinicopathologic features and survival rates were …

A Novel Sik2 Inhibitor Sic-19 Exhibits Synthetic Lethality With Parp Inhibitors In Ovarian Cancer, Fang Wang, Xuejiao Yu, Jun Qian, Yumin Cao, Shunli Dong, Shenghua Zhan, Zhen Lu, Robert C Bast, Qingxia Song, Youguo Chen, Yi Zhang, Jinhua Zhou

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: Ovarian cancer patients with HR proficiency (HRP) have had limited benefits from PARP inhibitor treatment, highlighting the need for improved therapeutic strategies. In this study, we developed a novel SIK2 inhibitor, SIC-19, and investigated its potential to enhance the sensitivity and expand the clinical utility of PARP inhibitors in ovarian cancer.

Methods: The SIK2 protein was modeled using a Molecular Operating Environment (MOE), and the most favorable model was selected based on a GBVI/WSA dG scoring function. The Chembridge Compound Library was screened, and the top 20 candidate compounds were tested for their interaction with SIK2 and downstream substrates, …