We used RNA-seq to interrogate prostate cancer specific gene fusions, alternative splicings, somatic mutations and novel transcripts. Overall design: We sequenced the transcriptome (polyA+) of 20 prostate cancer tumors and 10 matched normal tissues using Illumina GAII platform. Then we used bioinformatic approaches to identify prostate cancer specific aberrations which include gene fusion, alternative splicing, somatic mutation, etc.
Recurrent chimeric RNAs enriched in human prostate cancer identified by deep sequencing.
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View SamplesThe etiology of ovarian cancer is poorly understood, mainly due to the lack of an appropriate experimental model for studying the onset and progression of this disease. We have created a mouse model termed ERalpha d/d in which a conditional deletion of estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) gene occurred in the anterior pituitary, but ERalpha expression remained intact in the hypothalamus and the ovary. The loss of negative-feedback regulation by estrogen (E) at the level of the pituitary led to elevated production of luteinizing hormone (LH) by this tissue. Hyperstimulation of ovarian cells by LH resulted in increased steroidogenesis, leading to high circulating levels of progesterone, testosterone and E. The ERalpha d/d mice exhibited formation of palpable ovarian epithelial tumors starting at 5 months of age, and by 12 months, most mice carrying these tumors died. Besides proliferating epithelial cells, these tumors also contained an expanded population of stromal cells, which express P450 aromatase suggesting that these cells acquired the ability to synthesize E. In ERalpha d/d mice, in response to the E produced by the stromal cells, the ERalpha signaling is accentuated in the ovarian epithelial cells, triggering increased ERalpha-dependent gene expression, abnormal cell proliferation, and tumorigenesis. The ERalpha d/d animal model of ovarian epithelial tumorigenesis will serve as a powerful tool for exploring the involvement of E-dependent signaling pathways in the etiology of ovarian cancer.
Dysregulated estrogen receptor signaling in the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis leads to ovarian epithelial tumorigenesis in mice.
Sex, Age, Specimen part
View SamplesPlacenta development involves complex molecular and cellular interactions between the maternal endometrium and the developing embryo, however, it is not clear what are the precise mechanisms regulating this maternal-fetal crosstalk. Using genetic and cell biological approaches, we have demonstrated that Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 1 (Rac1), a maternal factor expressed in decidual cells and is markedly elevated in mouse decidua on days 7 and 8 of gestation, regulates the secretory pathways that mediate stromal-endothelial and stromal-trophoblast crosstalk within a narrow temporal window during placenta development.
Rac1 Regulates Endometrial Secretory Function to Control Placental Development.
Specimen part
View SamplesTo gain insights into the genes whose expression levels are altered during stromal cell differentiation (decidualization), gene microarray profiling was performed following the experimentally induced decidualization protocol.
Rac1 Regulates Endometrial Secretory Function to Control Placental Development.
Sex, Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesNotch signaling plays both oncogenic and tumor suppressor roles, depending on cell type. In contrast to T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL), where Notch activation promotes leukemogenesis, induction of Notch signaling in B-ALL leads to growth arrest and apoptosis. The Notch target Hairy/Enhancer of Split1 (HES1) is sufficient to reproduce this tumor suppressor phenotype in B-ALL, however the mechanism is not yet known. Here we report that HES1 regulates pro-apoptotic signals via the novel interacting protein Poly ADP-Ribose Polymerase1 (PARP1) in a cell type-specific manner. The interaction of HES1 with PARP1 inhibits HES1 function, induces PARP1 activation and results in PARP1 cleavage in B-ALL. HES1-induced PARP1 activation leads to self-ADP ribosylation of PARP1, consumption of NAD+, diminished ATP levels, and translocation of the Apoptosis Inducing Factor (AIF) from mitochondria to the nucleus, resulting in apoptosis in B-ALL, but not T-ALL. Importantly, induction of Notch signaling via the Notch agonist peptide DSL can reproduce these events and leads to BALL apoptosis. The novel interaction of HES1 and PARP1 in B-ALL modulates the function of the HES1 transcriptional complex and signals through PARP1 to induce apoptosis. This mechanism reveals a cell type-specific pro-apoptotic pathway which may lead to Notch agonist-based cancer therapeutics.
Notch/HES1-mediated PARP1 activation: a cell type-specific mechanism for tumor suppression.
Specimen part
View SamplesEwings sarcoma is highly malignant bone tumor that involves childhood and adolescent, and its nature has not been well understood. To clarify its cellular origin and the mechanisms of tumorigenesis, we used ex vivo approach to create a murine model for Ewings sarcoma. The osteochondrogenic progenitors derived from the embryonic superficial zone (eSZ, designated as FZ in the data set) of murine long bones at late gestation were purified by microdissection, introduced with EWS-FLI1 or EWS-ERG retroviruses and transplanted into nude mice. Ewings sarcoma-like small round cell sarcoma developed at 100% penetrance, whereas tumor induction was less effective when growth place (GP)-derived cells were used. The different response of gene expression to EWS-FLI1 between eSZ and GP cells suggests importance of the specific cellular context for EWS-FLI1 to induce Ewings sarcoma. The Wnt/-catenin pathway was involved in close relationship to the cellular context, with Dkk2 and Wipf1 as important downstream modulators. Furthermore, gene expression profiling revealed similarity between our models and human Ewings sarcoma. These results indicate that Ewings sarcoma originates from the embryonic osteochondrogenic progenitor.
Ewing's sarcoma precursors are highly enriched in embryonic osteochondrogenic progenitors.
Specimen part, Time
View SamplesEwings sarcoma is highly malignant bone tumor that involves childhood and adolescent, and its nature has not been well understood. To clarify its cellular origin and the mechanisms of tumorigenesis, we used ex vivo approach to create a murine model for Ewings sarcoma. The osteochondrogenic progenitors derived from the facial zone (FZ) of murine long bones at late gestation were purified by microdissection, introduced with EWS-FLI1 or EWS-ERG retroviruses and transplanted into nude mice. Ewings sarcoma-like small round cell sarcoma developed at 100% penetrance, whereas tumor induction was less effective when growth place (GP)-derived cells were used. The different response of gene expression to EWS-FLI1 between FZ and GP cells suggests importance of the specific cellular context for EWS-FLI1 to induce Ewings sarcoma. The Wnt/-catenin pathway was involved in close relationship to the cellular context, with Dkk2 and Wipf1 as important downstream modulators. Furthermore, gene expression profiling revealed similarity between our models and human Ewings sarcoma. These results indicate that Ewings sarcoma originates from the embryonic osteochondrogenic progenitor.
Ewing's sarcoma precursors are highly enriched in embryonic osteochondrogenic progenitors.
Specimen part
View SamplesOur study revealed that hypoxia inducible factor 2 alpha, Hif2 alpha, is a downstream target of estrogen signaling in mouse uterine stroma at the time of implantation. Further, conditional deletion of Hif2 alpha in mouse uterus leads to infertility due to impaired epithelial remodeling at the time of implantation.
A hypoxia-induced Rab pathway regulates embryo implantation by controlled trafficking of secretory granules.
Specimen part, Time
View SamplesOur previous studies have shown that bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2), a morphogen belonging to the TGF superfamily, is markedly induced in human primary endometrial stromal cells (HESC) as they undergo differentiation in response to steroid hormones and cAMP. WNT4 is a downstream target of BMP2 regulation in these cells.
WNT4 acts downstream of BMP2 and functions via β-catenin signaling pathway to regulate human endometrial stromal cell differentiation.
Specimen part
View SamplesMedulloblastoma is a malignant brain tumor that occurs predominantly in children. Current risk stratification based on the clinical parameters is inadequate for accurate prognostication. In order to get a better understanding of medulloblastoma biology, miRNA profiling of medulloblastomas was carried out in parallel with the expression profiling of protein- coding genes.
Distinctive microRNA signature of medulloblastomas associated with the WNT signaling pathway.
Sex
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