Project description:To investigate the biological differences between HIV-, HIV+/ART-experienced and HIV+/ART-naive diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, we performed whole exome sequencing of 30 pre-treatment formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) whole lymph node biopsies of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.
Project description:To investigate the biological differences between HIV-, HIV+/ART-experienced and HIV+/ART-naive diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, we performed RNA sequencing of 70 pre-treatment formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) whole lymph node biopsies of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.
Project description:Intrinsic resistance of lymphoma cells to apoptosis is a probable mechanism causing chemotherapy resistance and eventual fatal outcome in patients with diffuse large B cell lymphomas (DLBCL). We investigated whether microarray expression profiling of apoptosis related genes predicts clinical outcome in 46 patients with primary nodal DLBCL. Unsupervised cluster analysis using genes involved in apoptosis (N=246) resulted in 3 separate DLBCL groups partly overlapping with GCB versus ABC like phenotype. One group with poor clinical outcome was characterized by high expression levels of pro-and anti-apoptotic genes involved in the intrinsic apoptosis pathway. A 2nd group, also with poor clinical outcome, was characterized by high levels of apoptosis inducing cytotoxic effector genes, possibly reflecting a cellular cytotoxic immune response. The 3rd group showing a favourable outcome was characterized by low expression levels of genes characteristic for both other groups. Our results suggest that chemotherapy refractory DLBCL are characterized either by an intense cellular cytotoxic immune response or by constitutive activation of the intrinsic mediated apoptosis pathway with concomitant downstream inhibition of this apoptosis pathway. Consequently, strategies neutralizing the function of apoptosis-inhibiting proteins might be effective as alternative treatment modality in part of chemotherapy refractory DLBCL. Keywords: expression profiling B lymphomas
Project description:Nijmegen-breakage syndrome (NBS, OMIM #251260) is an autosomal recessive chromosomal instability syndrome characterized by a very distinct phenotype (microcephaly, growth retardation, immunodeficiency) associated with increased predisposition to develop malignancies, particularly of lymphoid origin (by the age of 20 years, over 40% of NBS patients develop cancer). Immunological lineage of lymphomas in NBS significantly differs from Non-Hodgkin Lymphomas (NHL) entities observed in general pediatric population as well as in primary immunodeficiencies. There is a strong predominance of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and T cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL/ALL), all showing clonal Ig/TCR rearrangements. In the current study we aimed to examined gene expression signature of metabolic pathways in DLBCL cells.
Project description:Based on the assumption that molecular mechanisms involved in cancerogenesis are characterized by groups of coordinately expressed genes, we developed and validated a novel method for analyzing transcriptional data called Correlated Gene Set Analysis (CGSA). Using 50 extracted gene sets we identified three different profiles of tumors in a cohort of 364 Diffuse large B-cell (DLBCL) and related mature aggressive B-cell lymphomas other than Burkitt lymphoma. The first profile had high level of expression of genes related to proliferation whereas the second profile exhibited a stromal and immune response phenotype. These two profiles were characterized by a large scale gene activation affecting genes which were recently shown to be epigenetically regulated, and which were enriched in oxidative phosphorylation, energy metabolism and nucleoside biosynthesis. The third and novel profile showed only low global gene activation similar to that found in normal B cells but not cell lines. Our study indicates novel levels of complexity of DLBCL with low or high large scale gene activation related to metabolism and biosynthesis and, within the group of highly activated DLBCLs, differential behavior leading to either a proliferative or a stromal and immune response phenotype.