Project description:Uterine fibroids are benign tumours affecting up to 80% of women of reproductive age, with 30% of patients suffering severe symptoms including abnormal uterine bleeding, pain and infertility. Several studies have identified mutations in MED12 or HMGA2 that account for the vast majority of genomic abnormalities in uterine fibroids, however, the processes by which these lead to UFs and HMB remain poorly understood. To systematically correlate genetic, transcriptional and proteomic phenotypes we collected fibroid, myometrium and endometrium tissues from 137 donors undergoing hysterectomy, myomectomy, or transcervical resection. Donors were profiled by genome-wide SNP arrays and their fibroids were genotyped for known mutations using a targeted sequencing approach. Tissues were analysed by RNA-sequencing and proteomics followed by a systems level approach using multiomics factor analysis. Whilst genotyping revealed 39.7% of common MED12 UF mutations, we observe multiple novel exonic and intronic variants of previously known mutated genes like COL4A5 and COL4A6. Systems level analysis of genotype, transcriptomic, and proteomic data between myometrium and fibroid donors identified multiple interrelated gene sets involved in UF pathophysiology, including extracellular matrix deposition and remodelling, protein glycosylation and sulphate biology. Equivalent analysis of endometrium stratified by donor HMB status revealed gene sets implicated in the condition, in particular RNA splicing in MED12 mutant fibroids. A paradigm is proposed, supported by a mouse model of HMB, whereby aberrant production of signalling molecules by MED12 mutant fibroids influences RNA transcript isoform expression in the endometrium, associated with abnormal bleeding. By merging clinical, genetic, transcriptomic, and proteomic information, we highlight multiple pathways which may underlie the pathomechanisms of UF biology and may facilitate the development of novel therapeutic strategies to treat heavy menstrual bleeding
Project description:Gut microbial profiling of uterine fibroids (UFs) patients comparing control subjects. The gut microbiota was examined by 16S rRNA quantitative arrays and bioinformatics analysis. The goal was to reveal alterations in the gut microbiome of uterine fibroids patients.
Project description:Our study represents a new strategy for identifying drivers and risk factors of uterine fibroids (F) by identifying genes and pathways differentially regulated in myometrial stem cells (SCs) isolated from myometrium without fibroids (MyoN) and from myometrium adjacent to uterine fibroids (MyoF) using RNA-seq approach. Moreover, we will perform the comparison analysis of the transcriptome between MyoF SCs and fibroid SCs to identify differentially expressed genes.
Project description:Uterine fibroids are benign myometrial smooth muscle tumors of unknown etiology that when symptomatic are the most common indication for hysterectomy in the USA. We conducted an integrated analysis of fibroids and adjacent normal myometria by whole exome sequencing, DNA methylation (Human Methylation EPIC) array, and RNA-sequencing. Unsupervised clustering by DNA methylation segregated normal myometria and fibroids, and further separated the fibroids into subtypes marked by MED12 mutation, HMGA2 activation (HMGA2hi) and HMGA1 activation (HMGA1hi). Upregulation of HMGA2 expression in HMGA2hi fibroids did not always appear to be dependent on translocation, as has been historically described, and was associated with hypomethylation in the HMGA2 gene body. Furthermore, we found that expression of HOXA13 was highly upregulated in fibroids and that overexpression of HOXA13 in a myometrial cell line induced expression of genes classically associated with uterine fibroids. Transcriptome analyses of the most differentially expressed genes between cervix and myometrium also showed that uterine fibroids and normal cervix clustered together and apart from normal myometria. Together, our integrated analysis shows a role for epigenetic modification in fibroid biology and strongly suggests that homeotic transformation of myometrium cells to a more cervical phenotype is important for the etiology of the disease.
Project description:Opportunistic bacterial pathogens require effective mechanisms to compete with other bacteria and to switch between host and environment-adapted states. The Type VI secretion system (T6SS) occurs widely in Gram-negative bacteria and mediates efficient killing of neighbouring competitors. Here we describe the distribution of T6SSs across the genus Serratia and report the unexpected discovery that a highly-conserved antibacterial T6SS is differentially active between closely-related clinical isolates of Serratia marcescens. By combining genomic and experimental approaches, we identified a genus-core two-component system which controls T6SS activity and is subject to very frequent inactivating mutations, exclusively in clinically-derived isolates of S. marcescens. This regulatory system controls a number of lifestyle-related traits at transcriptional and post-translational levels, including T6SS activity, antibiotic production, motility and adhesion. Our data support a model whereby this system represents a conserved, modular switch from sessile to pioneering and aggressive behaviour, which is subject to strong selection pressure in the clinical environment.
Project description:12q14~15 chromosomal rearrangements, specifically affecting the HMGA2 gene locus, are frequently observed in human uterine fibroids. Those fibroids are observed to show fast growth to a larger size compared to fibroids of normal karyotype. Since the HMGA2 gene is overexpressed, this study provides further insights in the development of uterine fibroids.
Project description:Uterine fibroids are benign myometrial smooth muscle tumors of unknown etiology that when symptomatic are the most common indication for hysterectomy in the USA. We conducted an integrated analysis of fibroids and adjacent normal myometria by whole exome sequencing, DNA methylation (Human Methylation EPIC) array, and RNA-sequencing. Unsupervised clustering by DNA methylation segregated normal myometria and fibroids, and further separated the fibroids into subtypes marked by MED12 mutation, HMGA2 activation (HMGA2hi) and HMGA1 activation (HMGA1hi). Upregulation of HMGA2 expression in HMGA2hi fibroids did not always appear to be dependent on translocation, as has been historically described, and was associated with hypomethylation in the HMGA2 gene body. Furthermore, we found that expression of HOXA13 was highly upregulated in fibroids and that overexpression of HOXA13 in a myometrial cell line induced expression of genes classically associated with uterine fibroids. Transcriptome analyses of the most differentially expressed genes between cervix and myometrium also showed that uterine fibroids and normal cervix clustered together and apart from normal myometria. Together, our integrated analysis shows a role for epigenetic modification in fibroid biology and strongly suggests that homeotic transformation of myometrium cells to a more cervical phenotype is important for the etiology of the disease.