| 1. |
- Wernig-Zorc, Sara, et al.
(författare)
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Global distribution of DNA hydroxymethylation and DNA methylation in chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
- 2019
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Ingår i: Epigenetics & chromatin. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1756-8935. ; 12:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) has been a good model system to understand the functional role of 5-methylcytosine (5-mC) in cancer progression. More recently, an oxidized form of 5-mC, 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5-hmC) has gained lot of attention as a regulatory epigenetic modification with prognostic and diagnostic implications for several cancers. However, there is no global study exploring the role of 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5-hmC) levels in CLL. Herein, using mass spectrometry and hMeDIP-sequencing, we analysed the dynamics of 5-hmC during B cell maturation and CLL pathogenesis.We show that naïve B-cells had higher levels of 5-hmC and 5-mC compared to non-class switched and class-switched memory B-cells. We found a significant decrease in global 5-mC levels in CLL patients (n=15) compared to naïve and memory B cells, with no changes detected between the CLL prognostic groups. On the other hand, global 5-hmC levels of CLL patients were similar to memory B cells and reduced compared to naïve B cells. Interestingly, 5-hmC levels were increased at regulatory regions such as gene-body, CpG island shores and shelves and 5-hmC distribution over the gene-body positively correlated with degree of transcriptional activity. Importantly, CLL samples showed aberrant 5-hmC and 5-mC pattern over gene-body compared to well-defined patterns in normal B-cells. Integrated analysis of 5-hmC and RNA-sequencing from CLL datasets identified three novel oncogenic drivers that could have potential roles in CLL development and progression.Thus, our study suggests that the global loss of 5-hmC, accompanied by its significant increase at the gene regulatory regions, constitute a novel hallmark of CLL pathogenesis. Our combined analysis of 5-mC and 5-hmC sequencing provided insights into the potential role of 5-hmC in modulating gene expression changes during CLL pathogenesis.
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| 2. |
- Ali, Mohamad Moustafa, et al.
(författare)
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LY6K-AS lncRNA is a lung adenocarcinoma prognostic biomarker and regulator of mitotic progression.
- 2021
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Ingår i: Oncogene. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1476-5594 .- 0950-9232. ; 40:13, s. 2463-2478
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recent advances in genomics unraveled several actionable mutational drivers in lung cancer, leading to promising therapies such as tyrosine kinase inhibitors and immune checkpoint inhibitors. However, the tumors' acquired resistance to the newly-developed as well as existing therapies restricts life quality improvements. Therefore, we investigated the noncoding portion of the human transcriptome in search of alternative actionable targets. We identified an antisense transcript, LY6K-AS, with elevated expression in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients, and its higher expression in LUAD patients predicts poor survival outcomes. LY6K-AS abrogation interfered with the mitotic progression of lung cancer cells resulting in unfaithful chromosomal segregation. LY6K-AS interacts with and stabilizes 14-3-3 proteins to regulate the transcription of kinetochore and mitotic checkpoint proteins. We also show that LY6K-AS regulates the levels of histone H3 lysine 4 trimethylation (H3K4me3) at the promoters of kinetochore members. Cisplatin treatment and LY6K-AS silencing affect many common pathways enriched in cell cycle-related functions. LY6K-AS silencing affects the growth of xenografts derived from wildtype and cisplatin-resistant lung cancer cells. Collectively, these data indicate that LY6K-AS silencing is a promising therapeutic option for LUAD that inhibits oncogenic mitotic progression.
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| 3. |
- Frank, Stefan, et al.
(författare)
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yylncT Defines a Class of Divergently Transcribed lncRNAs and Safeguards the T-mediated Mesodermal Commitment of Human PSCs.
- 2019
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Ingår i: Cell stem cell. - : Elsevier BV. - 1875-9777 .- 1934-5909. ; 24:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Human protein-coding genes are often accompanied by divergently transcribed non-coding RNAs whose functions, especially in cell fate decisions, are poorly understood. Using an hESC-based cardiac differentiation model, we define a class of divergent lncRNAs, termed yin yang lncRNAs (yylncRNAs), that mirror the cell-type-specific expression pattern of their protein-coding counterparts. yylncRNAs arepreferentially encoded from the genomic loci ofkey developmental cell fate regulators. Most yylncRNAs are spliced polyadenylated transcripts showing comparable expression patterns invivo inmouse and in human embryos. Signifying theirdevelopmental function, the key mesoderm specifier BRACHYURY (T) is accompanied by yylncT, whichlocalizes to the active T locus during mesoderm commitment. yylncT binds the de novo DNA methyltransferase DNMT3B, and its transcript is required for activation of the T locus, with yylncTdepletion specifically abolishing mesodermal commitment. Collectively, we report a lncRNA-mediated regulatory layer safeguarding embryonic cell fate transitions.
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| 4. |
- Juvvuna, Prasanna Kumar, et al.
(författare)
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NBAT1/CASC15-003/USP36 control MYCN expression and its downstream pathway genes in neuroblastoma.
- 2021
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Ingår i: Neuro-oncology advances. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 2632-2498. ; 3:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- MYCN has been an attractive therapeutic target in neuroblastoma considering the widespread amplification of the MYCN locus in neuroblastoma, and its established role in neuroblastoma development and progression. Thus, understanding neuroblastoma-specific control of MYCN expression at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional level would lead to identification of novel MYCN-dependent oncogenic pathways and potential therapeutic strategies.By performing loss- and gain-of-function experiments of the neuroblastoma hotspot locus 6p22.3 derived lncRNAs CASC15-003 and NBAT1, together with coimmunoprecipitation and immunoblotting of MYCN, we have shown that both lncRNAs post-translationally control the expression of MYCN through regulating a deubiquitinase enzyme USP36. USP36 oncogenic properties were investigated using cancer cell lines and in vivo models. RNA-seq analysis of loss-of-function experiments of CASC15-003/NBAT1/MYCN/USP36 and JQ1-treated neuroblastoma cells uncovered MYCN-dependent oncogenic pathways.We show that NBAT1/CASC15-003 control the stability of MYCN protein through their common interacting protein partner USP36. USP36 harbors oncogenic properties and its higher expression in neuroblastoma patients correlates with poor prognosis, and its downregulation significantly reduces tumor growth in neuroblastoma cell lines and xenograft models. Unbiased integration of RNA-seq data from CASC15-003, NBAT1, USP36, and MYCN knockdowns and neuroblastoma cells treated with MYCN inhibitor JQ1, identified genes that are jointly regulated by the NBAT1/CASC15-003/USP36/MYCN pathway. Functional experiments on one of the target genes, COL18A1, revealed its role in the NBAT1/CASC15-003-dependent cell adhesion feature in neuroblastoma cells.Our data show post-translational regulation of MYCN by NBAT1/CASC15-003/USP36, which represents a new regulatory layer in the complex multilayered gene regulatory network that controls MYCN expression.
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| 5. |
- Kanduri, Meena, 1974, et al.
(författare)
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A key role for EZH2 in epigenetic silencing of HOX genes in mantle cell lymphoma
- 2013
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Ingår i: Epigenetics. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1559-2294 .- 1559-2308. ; 8:12, s. 1280-8
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The chromatin modifier EZH2 is overexpressed and associated with inferior outcome in mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). Recently, we demonstrated preferential DNA methylation of HOX genes in MCL compared with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), despite these genes not being expressed in either entity. Since EZH2 has been shown to regulate HOX gene expression, to gain further insight into its possible role in differential silencing of HOX genes in MCL vs. CLL, we performed detailed epigenetic characterization using representative cell lines and primary samples. We observed significant overexpression of EZH2 in MCL vs. CLL. Chromatin immune precipitation (ChIP) assays revealed that EZH2 catalyzed repressive H3 lysine 27 trimethylation (H3K27me3), which was sufficient to silence HOX genes in CLL, whereas in MCL H3K27me3 is accompanied by DNA methylation for a more stable repression. More importantly, hypermethylation of the HOX genes in MCL resulted from EZH2 overexpression and subsequent recruitment of the DNA methylation machinery onto HOX gene promoters. The importance of EZH2 upregulation in this process was further underscored by siRNA transfection and EZH2 inhibitor experiments. Altogether, these observations implicate EZH2 in the long-term silencing of HOX genes in MCL, and allude to its potential as a therapeutic target with clinical impact.
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| 6. |
- Kopparapu, Pradeep Kumar, et al.
(författare)
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Gene-body hypermethylation controlled cryptic promoter and miR26A1-dependent EZH2 regulation of TET1 gene activity in chronic lymphocytic leukemia
- 2017
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Ingår i: Oncotarget. - : Impact Journals, LLC. - 1949-2553. ; 8:44, s. 77595-77608
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Ten-eleven-translocation 1 (TET1) protein is a member of dioxygenase protein family that catalyzes the oxidation of 5-methylcytosine to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine. TET1 is differentially expressed in many cancers, including leukemia. However, very little is known about mechanism behind TET1 deregulation. Previously, by characterizing global methylation patterns in CLL patients using MBD-seq, we found TET1 as one of the differentially methylated regions with gene-body hypermethylation. Herein, we characterize mechanisms that control TET1 gene activity at the transcriptional level. We show that treatment of CLL cell lines with 5-aza 2'-deoxycytidine (DAC) results in the activation of miR26A1, which causes decrease in both mRNA and protein levels of EZH2, which in turn results in the decreased occupancy of EZH2 over the TET1 promoter and consequently the loss of TET1 expression. In addition, DAC treatment also leads to the activation of antisense transcription overlapping the TET1 gene from a cryptic promoter, located in the hypermethylated intronic region. Increased expression of intronic transcripts correlates with decreased TET1 promoter activity through the loss of RNA Pol II occupancy. Thus, our data demonstrate that TET1 gene activation in CLL depends on miR26A1 regulated EZH2 binding at the TET1 promoter and silencing of novel cryptic promoter by gene-body hypermethylation.
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| 7. |
- Kopparapu, Pradeep Kumar, et al.
(författare)
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MCPH1 maintains long-term epigenetic silencing of ANGPT2 in chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
- 2015
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Ingår i: The FEBS journal. - : Wiley. - 1742-4658 .- 1742-464X. ; 282:10, s. 1939-1952
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The microcephalin gene (MCPH1) [also known as inhibitor of human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) expression] is a tumor suppressor gene that is functionally involved in the DNA damage response. Angiopoietin 2 (ANGPT2) is a crucial factor regulating tumor angiopoiesis. Deregulation of angiogenesis is one of the hallmarks of many cancers, including chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). In CLL, ANGPT2 is a well-studied potential prognostic marker. As MCPH1 overlaps with the ANGPT2 transcription unit on the same chromosome but in the opposite orientation, we wanted to study the functional role of MCPH1 in regulation of ANGPT2 in CLL. The mRNA expression levels of MCPH1 and ANGPT2, including the MCPH1 target gene hTERT, showed significant differences between two prognostic groups, i.e. IGHV-mutated and IGHV-unmutated (P=0.007 for MCPH1, P=0.0002 for ANGPT2, and P=0.00001 for hTERT), in which the expression level of MCPH1 was inversely correlated with the expression levels of hTERT and ANGPT2. Downregulation of MCPH1 resulted in upregulation of ANGPT2, accompanied by loss of its promoter methylation. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation and coimmunoprecipitation assays, we found that MCPH1 binds to the ANGPT2 promoter and recruits DNA methyltransferases, thereby silencing ANGPT2. Thus, our data suggest a novel function for MCPH1 in regulating and maintaining ANGPT2 silencing in CLL through regulation of promoter DNA methylation.
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| 8. |
- Kosalai, Subazini Thankaswamy, 1980, et al.
(författare)
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EZH2 upregulates the PI3K/AKT pathway through IGF1R and MYC in clinically aggressive chronic lymphocytic leukaemia
- 2019
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Ingår i: Epigenetics. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1559-2294 .- 1559-2308. ; 14:11, s. 1125-1140
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- EZH2 is overexpressed in poor-prognostic chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) cases, acting as an oncogene; however, thus far, the EZH2 target genes in CLL have not been disclosed. In this study, using ChIP-sequencing, we identified EZH2 and H3K27me3 target genes in two prognostic subgroups of CLL with distinct prognosis and outcome, i.e., cases with unmutated (U-CLL, n = 6) or mutated IGHV genes (M-CLL, n = 6). While the majority of oncogenic pathways were equally enriched for EZH2 target genes in both prognostic subgroups, PI3K pathway genes were differentially bound by EZH2 in U-CLL versus M-CLL. The occupancy of EZH2 for selected PI3K pathway target genes was validated in additional CLL samples (n = 16) and CLL cell lines using siRNA-mediated EZH2 downregulation and ChIP assays. Intriguingly, we found that EZH2 directly binds to the IGF1R promoter along with MYC and upregulates IGF1R expression in U-CLL, leading to downstream PI3K activation. By investigating an independent CLL cohort (n = 96), a positive correlation was observed between EZH2 and IGF1R expression with higher levels in U-CLL compared to M-CLL. Accordingly, siRNA-mediated downregulation of either EZH2, MYC or IGF1R and treatment with EZH2 and MYC pharmacological inhibitors in the HG3 CLL cell line induced a significant reduction in PI3K pathway activation. In conclusion, we characterize for the first time EZH2 target genes in CLL revealing a hitherto unknown implication of EZH2 in modulating the PI3K pathway in a non-canonical, PRC2-independent way, with potential therapeutic implications considering that PI3K inhibitors are effective therapeutic agents for CLL.
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| 9. |
- Mahale, Sagar, et al.
(författare)
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HnRNPK maintains single strand RNA through controlling double-strand RNA in mammalian cells.
- 2022
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Ingår i: Nature communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 13:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although antisense transcription is a widespread event in the mammalian genome, double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) formation between sense and antisense transcripts is very rare and mechanisms that control dsRNA remain unknown. By characterizing the FGF-2 regulated transcriptome in normal and cancer cells, we identified sense and antisense transcripts IER3 and IER3-AS1 that play a critical role in FGF-2 controlled oncogenic pathways. We show that IER3 and IER3-AS1 regulate each other's transcription through HnRNPK-mediated post-transcriptional regulation. HnRNPK controls the mRNA stability and colocalization of IER3 and IER3-AS1. HnRNPK interaction with IER3 and IER3-AS1 determines their oncogenic functions by maintaining them in a single-stranded form. hnRNPK depletion neutralizes their oncogenic functions through promoting dsRNA formation and cytoplasmic accumulation. Intriguingly, hnRNPK loss-of-function and gain-of-function experiments reveal its role in maintaining global single- and double-stranded RNA. Thus, our data unveil the critical role of HnRNPK in maintaining single-stranded RNAs and their physiological functions by blocking RNA-RNA interactions.
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| 10. |
- Mondal, Tanmoy, 1981, et al.
(författare)
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Sense-antisense lncRNA pair encoded by locus 6p22.3 determines neuroblastoma susceptibility via the USP36-CHD7-SOX9 regulatory axis
- 2018
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Ingår i: Cancer Cell. - : Elsevier BV. - 1535-6108 .- 1878-3686. ; 33:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Trait-associated loci often map to genomic regions encoding long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs), but the role of these lncRNAs in disease etiology is largely unexplored. We show that a pair of sense/antisense lncRNA (6p22lncRNAs) encoded by CASC15 and NBAT1 located at the neuroblastoma (NB) risk-associated 6p22.3 locus are tumor suppressors and show reduced expression in high-risk NBs. Loss of functional synergy between 6p22lncRNAs results in an undifferentiated state that is maintained by a gene-regulatory network, including SOX9 located on 17q, a region frequently gained in NB. 6p22lncRNAs regulate SOX9 expression by controlling CHD7 stability via modulating the cellular localization of USP36, encoded by another 17q gene. This regulatory nexus between 6p22.3 and 17q regions may lead to potential NB treatment strategies.
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