Project description:Background: Resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy remains a major impediment in the treatment of serous epithelial ovarian cancer. The objective of this study was to use gene expression profiling to delineate major deregulated pathways and biomarkers associated with the development of intrinsic chemotherapy resistance upon exposure to standard first-line therapy for ovarian cancer. Methods: The study cohort comprised 28 patients divided into two groups based on their varying sensitivity to first-line chemotherapy using progression free survival (PFS) as a surrogate of response. All 28 patients had advanced stage, high-grade serous ovarian cancer, and were treated with the same standard platinum-based chemotherapy. Twelve patient tumors demonstrating relative resistance to platinum chemotherapy corresponding to shorter PFS (< eight months) were compared to sixteen tumors from platinum-sensitive patients (PFS > eighteen months). Whole transcriptome profiling was performed using a Affymetrix high-resolution microarray platform to permit global comparisons of gene expression profiles between tumors from the resistant group and the sensitive group. Results: Microarray data analysis revealed a set of 204 discriminating genes possessing expression levels, which could influence differential chemotherapy response between the two groups. Robust statistical testing was then performed which eliminated a dependence on the normalization algorithm employed, producing a restricted list of differentially regulated genes, and which found IGF1 to be the most strongly differentially expressed gene. Pathway analysis, based on the list of 204 genes, revealed enrichment in genes primarily involved in the IGF1/PI3K/NFκB/ERK gene signalling networks. Conclusions: This study has identified pathway specific prognostic biomarkers possibly underlying a differential chemotherapy response in patients undergoing standard platinum-based treatment of serous epithelial ovarian cancer. Future studies to validate these markers are necessary to apply this knowledge to biomarker-based clinical trials. Total RNA from 12 chemotherapy resistant and 16 sensitive chemotherapy sensitive high-grade serous epithelial ovarian cancer samples was subjected to whole transcriptome profiling using Affymetrix U133 Plus 2.0 arrays
Project description:In the present project, in order to explore the molecular basis of platinum resistance and further determine potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC), we conducted a comparative proteomic analysis to identify the differentially expressed proteins between tumor tissues from platinum-sensitive and platinum-resistant HGSOC patient groups.
Project description:Cisplatin- and carboplatin-resistant high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) cells were generated and new lines were created from single cell clones. All cells were derived from a common ancestral line, Ovcar4. RNA sequencing was performed to examine transcriptional changes related to acquisition of platinum resistance.
Project description:Objective: Ovarian tumors of low-malignant potential (LMP) and low-grade serous ovarian carcinomas are thought to represent different stages on a tumorigenic continuum and to develop along pathways distinct from that of high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma. Past studies have utilized gene expression profiles to support this theory. The objective of the current study was to identify new genes whose expression profiles in LMP ovarian tumors and low-grade ovarian carcinomas differ from that in high-grade ovarian carcinomas. Methods: We used RNA from 3 normal human ovarian surface epithelia (HOSE) and from 10 low-grade and 10 high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma samples to perform gene expression profiling. Using real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), we evaluated changes in PAX2 mRNA expression in cDNA created from RNA extracted from an independent set of ovarian tissue samples (7 LMP tumors and 17 low-grade and 23 high-grade serous carcinomas). We also examined PAX2 expression using Western blot analysis of protein extracted from a set of ovarian LMP and low- and high-grade carcinoma tissue samples. Additionally, we used immunohistochemistry (IHC) to validate PAX2 overexpression in a third independent set of paraffin ovarian tissue sections from 17 LMP tumors and 16 low- and 257 high-grade carcinomas. Results: Gene profiling revealed higher expression of PAX2 in low-grade than in high-grade ovarian carcinomas. Real-time RT-PCR demonstrated a statistically significant difference in median PAX2 mRNA expression, expressed as fold change, among ovarian LMP tumor (1837.38), low-grade (183.12), and high-grade (3.72) carcinoma samples (p=0.015). Western blot analysis revealed strong PAX2 expression in ovarian LMP and low-grade carcinoma samples but no PAX2 protein expression in high-grade carcinomas. On IHC, more LMP tumor and low-grade carcinoma samples expressed moderate to high levels of PAX2 than did high-grade ovarian carcinoma samples. The numbers of samples with strong nuclear staining was significantly higher for ovarian LMP tumors (10 of 17, p<0.001) and low-grade serous carcinomas (10 of 16, p<0.001) than for high-grade carcinomas (27 of 257). Discussion: Our identification and validation of higher PAX2 expression in ovarian LMP tumors and low-grade serous carcinomas than in high-grade carcinomas supports the two-tiered hypothesis that the first two are on a continuum and are distinct from high-grade ovarian carcinomas. PAX2 may represent a potential biomarker and future therapeutic target for individualizing chemotherapy for ovarian LMP tumors and low-grade carcinomas in the future.
Project description:High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) is responsible for the largest number of ovarian cancer deaths. The frequent therapy-resistant relapses necessitate a better understanding of mechanisms driving therapy-resistance. Therefore, we mapped more than hundred thousand cells of HGSOC patients in different phases of the disease, using single-cell RNA sequencing. Within patients, we compared chemonaive with chemotreated samples. As such, we were able to create a single cell atlas of different HGSOCs lesions and their treatment.
Project description:High-grade serous ovarian cancer is the most aggressive histological type of epithelial ovarian cancer, which is characterized by a high frequency of somatic TP53 mutations. To provide a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of these cancers and to develop a risk classification system, we conducted profiling of the copy number alterations present in these tumors. Thirty patients who were diagnosed as high-grade serous ovarian cancer were recruited in this study. Affymetrix SNP array were performed according to the manufacturer's directions on DNA extracted from high-grade serous ovarian cancer tissues or peripheral blood samples. The Japanese Serous Ovarian Cancer Study Group
Project description:Patients with high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) have experienced little improvement in overall survival, and standard treatment has not advanced beyond platinum-based combination chemotherapy, during the past 30 years. To understand the drivers of clinical phenotypes better, here we use whole-genome sequencing of tumour and germline DNA samples from 92 patients with primary refractory, resistant, sensitive and matched acquired resistant disease. We show that gene breakage commonly inactivates the tumour suppressors RB1, NF1, RAD51B and PTEN in HGSC, and contributes to acquired chemotherapy resistance. CCNE1 amplification was common in primary resistant and refractory disease. We observed several molecular events associated with acquired resistance, including multiple independent reversions of germline BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations in individual patients, loss of BRCA1 promoter methylation, an alteration in molecular subtype, and recurrent promoter fusion associated with overexpression of the drug efflux pump MDR1. Total RNA was hybridised to NanoString miRNA Human v2.1 probes, immobilized to NanoString cartridge and analysed on the NanoString Digital Analyzer. NanoString nSolver Analysis Software was utilised to check QC metrics and extract raw miRNA counts. Expression was normalised for input using the housekeeping genes. Contributor: The Australian Ovarian Cancer Study Group
Project description:Here we investigated different cell populations within ovarian cancer using single-cell RNA seq: fourteen samples from nine patients with differing grades (high grade, low grade and benign) as well as different origin sites (primary and metastatic tumor site, ovarian in origin and fallopian in origin).
Project description:Understanding the mechanism of resistance in platinum-based regimens for the treatment of high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) is important for identifying new therapeutic targets to improve the clinical outcome of ovarian cancer patients. Mass spectrometry-based proteomic strategy was applied to spheroidal cisplatin sensitive and resistant HGSOC generated cell lines in the absence and presence of cisplatin drug. A complete expressed HGSOC proteome and phosphoproteome was characterized in cisplatin sensitive and resistant HGSOC cell lines providing insight into the mechanism of resistance development. PCA analysis showed that phosphorylation of a few proteins provides better classification than the whole proteome of the cellular subtypes. Specifically, a distinctive phosphoproteomic signature between cisplatin sensitive and resistant cell lines in the absence of drug was observed. This same phosphoproteomic signature was observed in our cisplatin sensitive cell line in the absence and presence of drug, indicating a vital role for phosphorylation of proteins in resistance development to cisplatin. The most phosphorylated protein was sequestosome (p62/SQSTM1). Differential expressions of apoptosis by the prognostic factor ratio of Bcl-2/Bax and autophagy, known to be regulated by p62/SQSTM1, was validated in the proteome data and by western blot analysis. A significant increase in apoptosis in the presence of cisplatin was observed in only the sensitive cell line while autophagy revealed increased expression in the resistant relative to sensitive cell line. Furthermore, site specific phosphorylation on 20 modified residues of sequestosome was characterized. Elevated expression of phosphorylation of sequestosome in resistant HGSOC cell lines was validated with western blot analysis. Here, we propose phosphorylation of sequestosome to be a marker and key in cisplatin resistance development in HGOSC ovarian cancers by shuttling ubiquitinated proteins to the autophagy pathway and influencing down-regulation of apoptosis.
Project description:To determine the signaling networks that are dysregulated in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer, gene expression data were obtained from, and compared between, the ovarian cancer cell line, A2780, and its cisplatin-resistant derivative, A2780cis. Gene expression data from a cisplatin-sensitive ovarian cancer cell line (A2780) were collected and compared to gene expression data from a cisplatin-resistant cell line (A2780cis). 6 independent experiments were completed for both the sensitive and resistant cell lines.