Project description:Understanding the contribution of abnormal genetic and epigenetic programs to acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is necessary for the integrated design of targeted therapies. To investigate this, we determined the effect of epigenetic reprogramming on leukemic behavior by generating induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from AML patient samples harboring MLL rearrangements. AML-derived iPSCs (AML-iPSCs) retained leukemic mutations, but reset leukemic DNA methylation/gene expression patterns and lacked leukemic potential. However, when differentiated into hematopoietic cells, AML-iPSCs reacquired the ability to give rise to leukemia in vivo and reestablished leukemic methylation/gene expression patterns, including an aberrant MLL signature, indicating that epigenetic reprogramming was insufficient to eliminate leukemic behavior. In one case, we identified distinct AML-iPSC KRAS mutant and wildtype subclones that demonstrated differential growth properties and therapeutic susceptibilities, predicting KRAS wildtype clonal relapse due to increased cytarabine resistance. Increased cytarabine resistance was further observed in a cohort of KRAS wildtype MLL-rearranged AML samples, demonstrating the utility of AML-iPSCs in predicting subclonal relapse and facilitating clonal targeting in AML. This SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Project description:Understanding the contribution of abnormal genetic and epigenetic programs to acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is necessary for the integrated design of targeted therapies. To investigate this, we determined the effect of epigenetic reprogramming on leukemic behavior by generating induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from AML patient samples harboring MLL rearrangements. AML-derived iPSCs (AML-iPSCs) retained leukemic mutations, but reset leukemic DNA methylation/gene expression patterns and lacked leukemic potential. However, when differentiated into hematopoietic cells, AML-iPSCs reacquired the ability to give rise to leukemia in vivo and reestablished leukemic methylation/gene expression patterns, including an aberrant MLL signature, indicating that epigenetic reprogramming was insufficient to eliminate leukemic behavior. In one case, we identified distinct AML-iPSC KRAS mutant and wildtype subclones that demonstrated differential growth properties and therapeutic susceptibilities, predicting KRAS wildtype clonal relapse due to increased cytarabine resistance. Increased cytarabine resistance was further observed in a cohort of KRAS wildtype MLL-rearranged AML samples, demonstrating the utility of AML-iPSCs in predicting subclonal relapse and facilitating clonal targeting in AML.
Project description:Understanding the contribution of abnormal genetic and epigenetic programs to acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is necessary for the integrated design of targeted therapies. To investigate this, we determined the effect of epigenetic reprogramming on leukemic behavior by generating induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from AML patient samples harboring MLL rearrangements. AML-derived iPSCs (AML-iPSCs) retained leukemic mutations, but reset leukemic DNA methylation/gene expression patterns and lacked leukemic potential. However, when differentiated into hematopoietic cells, AML-iPSCs reacquired the ability to give rise to leukemia in vivo and reestablished leukemic methylation/gene expression patterns, including an aberrant MLL signature, indicating that epigenetic reprogramming was insufficient to eliminate leukemic behavior. In one case, we identified distinct AML-iPSC KRAS mutant and wildtype subclones that demonstrated differential growth properties and therapeutic susceptibilities, predicting KRAS wildtype clonal relapse due to increased cytarabine resistance. Increased cytarabine resistance was further observed in a cohort of KRAS wildtype MLL-rearranged AML samples, demonstrating the utility of AML-iPSCs in predicting subclonal relapse and facilitating clonal targeting in AML.
Project description:Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a hematological malignancy, associated with unfavorable patient outcome primarily due to disease relapse. Since specific early leukemic hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) are suggested to be responsible for AML propagation, the present study used single cell analysis (SCA) to detect and explore rare relapse-initiating HSPC clones, appearing already at diagnosis. To address inherent SCA limitations, we developed a unique high-resolution technique capable to follow single cell-derived subclones of heterogeneous HSPC subpopulations during AML evolution. Each of these subclones was evaluated for chemo-resistance, in-vivo leukemogenic potential, mutational profile, and the subclone cell of origin identified using reconstruction of phylogenetic trees. This study, employing combined functional and genomic analyses, unraveled the patient-specific HSPC subpopulations involved in chemo-resistance and determined, at time of diagnosis, the phenotype of the relapse-initiating clone, allowing early prediction of AML recurrence and suggesting novel precise therapeutic targets for relapse prevention.
Project description:Intra-tumour heterogeneity caused by clonal evolution is a major problem in cancer treatment stratification. To address this problem, we performed label-free quantitative proteomics on primary acute myeloid leukemia (AML) samples. We identified 50 leukemia-enriched plasma membrane (PM) proteins enabling the prospective isolation of genetically distinct subclones from individual AML patients. Subclones differed in their regulatory phenotype, drug sensitivity, growth and engraftment behavior, as determined by RNA sequencing, DNaseI hypersensitive site mapping, transcription factor occupancy analysis, in vitro culture and xenograft transplantation. Finally, we show that these markers can be used to identify and longitudinally track distinct leukemic clones in patients in routine diagnostics. Our study describes a strategy for a major improvement in stratifying cancer diagnosis and treatment.
Project description:Dysregulated gene expression is one of the most prevalent features in human cancers. Here, we show that most subtypes of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) depend on the aberrant assembly of the MYB transcriptional co-activator complex. By rapid and selective peptidomimetic interference with the binding of CBP/P300 to MYB, but not CREB or MLL1, we find that the leukemic functions of MYB are mediated by CBP/P300-mediated co-activation of a distinct set of transcriptional factor complexes that are aberrantly assembled with MYB in AML cells. This therapeutic remodeling is accompanied by dynamic redistribution of CBP/P300 complexes to genes that control cellular differentiation and growth. Thus, aberrantly organized transcription factor complexes control convergent gene expression programs in AML cells. These findings establish a compelling strategy for pharmacologic reprogramming of oncogenic gene expression that supports its targeting for leukemias and other human cancers caused by dysregulated gene control.
Project description:The reprogramming of human acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells into induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines could provide new faithful genetic models of AML, but is currently hindered by low success rates and uncertainty about whether iPSC-derived cells resemble their primary counterparts. Here we developed a reprogramming method tailored to cancer cells, with which we generated iPSCs from 15 patients representing all major genetic groups of AML. These AML-iPSCs retain genetic fidelity and produce transplantable hematopoietic cells with hallmark phenotypic leukemic features. Critically, single-cell transcriptomics reveal that, upon xenotransplantation, iPSC-derived leukemias faithfully mimic the primary patient-matched xenografts. Transplantation of iPSC-derived leukemias capturing a clone and subclone from the same patient allowed us to isolate the contribution of a FLT3-ITD mutation to the AML phenotype. The results and resources reported here can transform basic and preclinical cancer research of AML and other human cancers.
Project description:Leukemic stem cells (LSC) might be the source for leukemic disease self-renewal and account for disease relapse after treatment, which makes them a critical target for further therapeutic options. Leukemia associated antigens (LAA) might be suitable structures to be attacked by immunotherapeutic agents. We performed primary AML sample enrichment and microarray studies to define LAA expression levels in AML. We compared the LAA expression in the enriched CD34+CD38- AML fraction to that of enriched HSC of healthy donors and AML bulk cells (CD34+CD38+, CD34-CD38+ and CD34-CD38). Furthermore, we investigated the expression patterns of co-stimulatory molecules in LSC, bulk AML cells and enriched HSC, Conclusion: We demonstrated the differential expression of several LAA in LSC, and their suitability as target structures. We enriched primary AML samples using CD34 and CD38 as markers to compare LAA expression levels of LSC, HSC and AML bulk. LAA expression profiles comparing LSC, HSC and leukemic bulk AML citation: Leukemic progenitor cells are susceptible to targeting by stimulated cytotoxic T cells against immunogenic leukemia-associated antigens Vanessa Schneider, Lu Zhang, Markus Rojewski, Natalie Fekete, Hubert Schrezenmeier, Alexander Erle, Lars Bullinger, Susanne Hofmann, Marlies Götz, Konstanze Döhner, Susann Ihme, Hartmut Döhner, Christian Buske, Michaela Feuring-Buske, Jochen Greiner