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1.
Pathology ; 55(7): 958-965, 2023 Dec.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37741703

ABSTRACT

Neuroblastoma is a heterogeneous paediatric malignant tumour. Telomere maintenance mechanism (TMM) by telomerase activation or alternative lengthening of telomeres (ALT) is a hallmark of high-risk neuroblastoma. However, the prior assays for telomerase, such as TERT expression by RNA sequencing or microarrays, may not be easy to perform in many histopathology laboratories in hospitals. The aims of this study are to assess the utility of ultrasensitive single-cell RNA in situ hybridisation (RNAscope), immunohistochemistry, and RT-qPCR on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tumour samples as diagnostic tools for detecting TERT expression in neuroblastoma. In this study, we detected MYCN amplification in 22 of 222 cases (10%), TERT rearrangements in 18 of 220 cases (8%), and ALT activation in 39 of 222 cases (18%) using fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH). By RNA in situ hybridisation, 36 of 210 (17%) pretreatment neuroblastomas were found to have TERT overexpression, which was significantly associated with the high-risk group (33/78, 42%), TERT rearrangements (16/18, 89%), and MYCN amplification (13/22, 59%). None of the tumours with ALT showed TERT staining. In our study, 19 of the 55 MYCN non-amplified high-risk neuroblastomas displayed TERT mRNA expression, including 13 of the 14 TERT rearrangements, none of the 30 ALT-positive cases, and a significant proportion (6/11, 55%) that did not have the aforementioned genomic anomalies. RT-qPCR results correlated well with RNAscope levels (Spearman's rho=0.621, p<0.001, n=94). In conclusion, TERT RNA in situ hybridisation and RT-qPCR are suitable methods to evaluate TERT expression in neuroblastoma. The combination of detection of the genomic alterations and TERT mRNA expression is a powerful strategy for TMM activation detection, which can categorise neuroblastomas into multiple clinical subgroups for risk stratification in routine histopathology practice.


Subject(s)
Neuroblastoma , Telomerase , Child , Humans , Telomerase/genetics , Telomerase/metabolism , N-Myc Proto-Oncogene Protein/genetics , N-Myc Proto-Oncogene Protein/metabolism , Paraffin Embedding , Neuroblastoma/diagnosis , Neuroblastoma/genetics , Neuroblastoma/pathology , Polymerase Chain Reaction , RNA , RNA, Messenger
2.
Cell Mol Gastroenterol Hepatol ; 16(5): 735-755, 2023.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37478905

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Hepatoblastoma (HB) is a common pediatric malignant liver tumor that is characterized by a low level of genetic mutations. Alternative splicing (AS) has been shown to be closely associated with cancer progression, especially in tumors with a low mutational burden. However, the role of AS in HB remains unknown. METHODS: Transcriptome sequencing was performed on 5 pairs of HB tissues and matched non-tumor tissues to delineate the AS landscape in HB. AS events were validated in 92 samples from 46 patients. RNA pull-down and RNA immunoprecipitation assays were carried out to identify splicing factors that regulate the AS of small nucleolar RNA host genes (SNHG). Patient-derived organoids (PDOs) were established to investigate the role of the splicing factor polyadenylate-binding nuclear protein 1 (PABPN1). RESULTS: This study uncovered aberrant alternative splicing in HB, including lncRNAs from SNHG family that undergo intron retention in HB. Further investigations revealed that PABPN1, a significantly upregulated RNA binding protein, interacts with splicing machinery in HB, inducing the intron retention of these SNHG RNAs and the downregulation of intronic small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs). Functionally, PABPN1 acts as an oncofetal splicing regulator in HB by promoting cell proliferation and DNA damage repair via inducing the intron retention of SNHG19. Knock-down of PABPN1 increases the cisplatin sensitivity of HB PDOs. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings revealed the role of intron retention in regulating snoRNA expression in hepatoblastoma, explained detailed regulatory mechanism between PABPN1 and the intron retention of SNHG RNAs, and provided insight into the development of new HB treatment options.


Subject(s)
Hepatoblastoma , Liver Neoplasms , RNA, Long Noncoding , Child , Humans , RNA, Small Nucleolar/genetics , RNA, Small Nucleolar/metabolism , RNA, Long Noncoding/genetics , RNA, Long Noncoding/metabolism , Hepatoblastoma/drug therapy , Hepatoblastoma/genetics , Alternative Splicing/genetics , Drug Resistance, Neoplasm/genetics , Liver Neoplasms/drug therapy , Liver Neoplasms/genetics , Poly(A)-Binding Protein I/genetics , Poly(A)-Binding Protein I/metabolism
3.
Pathol Res Pract ; 241: 154240, 2023 Jan.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36436316

ABSTRACT

Neuroblastoma (NB) is a sympathetic nervous system tumor and one of the most common pediatric, extra-cranial, solid tumors, especially in early childhood. Its expression is heterogeneous and shows a unique clinical and prognostic feature. Due to its insidious onset, most diagnoses are accompanied by metastasis, making patient prognoses extremely poor. Novel biomarkers are urgently needed for easy diagnosis, metastasis detection, and investigation of potential mechanisms regulating NB tumor progression. Recent research highlights that circulating tumor markers could be used to diagnose and monitor prognosis in various tumors. Among them, exosomal genetic material has attracted much attention because of its tumor-secreted specificity and unique mechanism of action. In this study, we used next-generation sequencing to study PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) in exosomes derived from NB patient plasma. We found higher human piRNA 1089 (hsa-piR-1089) levels in exosomes from NB patients than from normal controls. Our receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses showed that hsa-piR-1089 had high diagnostic sensitivity and specificity. We also found that high hsa-piR-1089 expression in NB tumor tissues was associated with a high-risk Children's Oncology Group classification and metastasis. Our in vitro experiments showed that exosomal hsa-piR-1089 promoted NB cell proliferation and migration by inhibiting Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (KEAP1) expression. Moreover, low KEAP1 expression was associated with NB progression in clinical samples. In conclusion, our data indicate that blood-borne exosomal hsa-piR-1089 is a diagnostic marker for NB and assessing metastasis. Our study provides a quick, simple, and noninvasive diagnostic method for NB and contributes to developing new treatment strategies.


Subject(s)
NF-E2-Related Factor 2 , Neuroblastoma , Child, Preschool , Child , Humans , Kelch-Like ECH-Associated Protein 1/metabolism , NF-E2-Related Factor 2/metabolism , Neuroblastoma/genetics , Biomarkers, Tumor/metabolism , Piwi-Interacting RNA , Cell Proliferation/genetics
4.
BMC Pediatr ; 22(1): 404, 2022 07 11.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35820898

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: MYCN oncogene amplification is associated with treatment failure and poor prognosis in neuroblastoma. To date, most detection methods of MYCN focus on DNA copy numbers instead of protein expression, which is the real one performing biological function, for poor antibodies. The current investigation was to explore a fast and reliable way to detect MYCN protein expression and evaluate its performance in predicting prognosis. METHODS: Several MYCN antibodies were used to detect MYCN protein expression by immunohistochemistry (IHC), and one was chosen for further study. We correlated the IHC results of MYCN from 53 patients with MYCN fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and identified the sensitivity and specificity of IHC. The relationship between patient prognosis and MYCN protein expression was detected from this foundation. RESULTS: MYCN amplification status detected by FISH was most valuable for INSS stage 3 patients. In the cohort of 53 samples, IHC test demonstrated 80.0-85.7% concordance with FISH results. Further analyzing those cases with inconsistent results, we found that patients with MYCN amplification but low protein expression tumors always had a favorable prognosis. In contrast, if patients with MYCN non-amplified tumors were positive for MYCN protein, they had a poor prognosis. CONCLUSION: MYCN protein level is better than MYCN amplification status in predicting the prognosis of neuroblastoma patients. Joint of FISH and IHC could confirm MYCN protein stability and achieve better prediction effect than the singular method.


Subject(s)
N-Myc Proto-Oncogene Protein , Neuroblastoma , Gene Amplification , Humans , In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence , N-Myc Proto-Oncogene Protein/genetics , N-Myc Proto-Oncogene Protein/metabolism , Neuroblastoma/diagnosis , Neuroblastoma/genetics , Neuroblastoma/metabolism , Prognosis , Protein Stability
6.
Cell Transplant ; 30: 963689721996649, 2021.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-33631963

ABSTRACT

In the immunocompromised setting, recipients of solid-organ or hematopoietic stem-cell transplants carry an increased risk of post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD). Burkitt lymphoma (BL) PTLD is a rare form of monomorphic B-cell PTLD, which lacks a standard best treatment. Here, we report the successful treatment of refractory BL-PTLD with autologous anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy. A male patient was diagnosed with BL-PTLD, with an increasing Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) viral load, at 21 months after undergoing living liver transplantation from his mother due to neonatal biliary atresia. After 10 cycles rituximab +/- intensive chemotherapy and surgical tumor resection, the tumors significantly advanced. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) was performed on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tumor tissue, revealing one mutation in exon 5, TP53: p.A159 V, which may be associated with chemo-resistance. Thus, treatment was started with autologous anti-CD19 CAR T-cell therapy. We administered 9.0 × 106/kg autologous anti-CD19 CAR T-cells, after conditioning with cyclophosphamide and fludarabine. Unexpectedly, the patient experienced only mild (Grade II) cytokine release syndrome (CRS) without neurotoxicity. Finally, he went into complete remission (CR), and has achieved 16-month event-free survival to date. In addition, liver function has remained stably within the normal range without any immunosuppressive therapy. The literature includes only five previously reported BL cases treated with CAR T-cell therapy. In conclusion, the present case suggests that autologous anti-CD19 CAR T-cell therapy may represent a new therapeutic option for some cases of refractory BL-PTLD.Clinical trial number: ChiCTR2000032211.


Subject(s)
Burkitt Lymphoma/etiology , Burkitt Lymphoma/therapy , Liver Transplantation/adverse effects , T-Lymphocytes/metabolism , Burkitt Lymphoma/pathology , Cell- and Tissue-Based Therapy , Humans , Infant , Male , Receptors, Chimeric Antigen/therapeutic use
7.
IEEE Trans Med Imaging ; 40(1): 395-404, 2021 01.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-32991280

ABSTRACT

The most frequent extracranial solid tumors of childhood, named peripheral neuroblastic tumors (pNTs), are very challenging to diagnose due to their diversified categories and varying forms. Auxiliary diagnosis methods of such pediatric malignant cancers are highly needed to provide pathologists assistance and reduce the risk of misdiagnosis before treatments. In this paper, inspired by the particularity of microscopic pathology images, we integrate neural networks with the texture energy measure (TEM) and propose a novel network architecture named DetexNet (deep texture network). This method enforces the low-level representation pattern clearer via embedding the expert knowledge as prior, so that the network can seize the key information of a relatively small pathological dataset more smoothly. By applying and finetuning TEM filters in the bottom layer of a network, we greatly improve the performance of the baseline. We further pre-train the model on unlabeled data with an auto-encoder architecture and implement a color space conversion on input images. Two kinds of experiments under different assumptions in the condition of limited training data are performed, and in both of them, the proposed method achieves the best performance compared with other state-of-the-art models and doctor diagnosis.


Subject(s)
Neoplasms , Neural Networks, Computer , Child , Humans , Neoplasms/diagnostic imaging
9.
Cancer Immunol Immunother ; 69(11): 2333-2343, 2020 Nov.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-32514618

ABSTRACT

Patients with pediatric cancers such as neuroblastoma (NB) are often unresponsive to checkpoint blockade immunotherapy. One major factor in pediatric tumor resistance to immunotherapy is considered to be the low mutation rate of pediatric tumors. Another factor may be the overexpression of additional inhibitory pathways. While analyzing the RNA-sequencing database TARGET, we found that human NB tumors overexpress immune checkpoint molecule CD200. To determine its significance and impact on tumor immune microenvironment, we analyzed 49 cases of previously untreated, surgically removed NB tumors using immunohistochemistry and multi-color flow cytometry (FACS). We found that CD200 is overexpressed in more than 90% of NB tumors. In the tumor microenvironment of NB, CD200 is mainly overexpressed in CD45- NB tumor cells, while its cognate receptor (CD200R) is mainly expressed in HLA-DR+CD14+ myeloid cells and CD11c+ dendritic cells. Low-level expression of CD200R is also observed in tumor-infiltrating CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. In NB tumors with higher CD200 expression (CD200high), we observed lower numbers of HLA-DR+CD14+ myeloid cells and less tumor-infiltrating CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Moreover, we found that CD4+ and CD8+ T cells produced less IFN-γ and/or TNF-α in CD200high NB tumors. Thus, CD200-CD200R pathway appears to downregulate anti-tumor immunity in the tumor microenvironment of NB tumors, and blockade of this pathway may be beneficial for NB patients.


Subject(s)
Antigens, CD/immunology , Lymphocytes, Tumor-Infiltrating/immunology , Neuroblastoma/immunology , Tumor Microenvironment/immunology , CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes/immunology , CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/immunology , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Infant , Male , Orexin Receptors/immunology , Tumor Escape/immunology
10.
Histopathology ; 77(4): 611-621, 2020 Oct.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-32590884

ABSTRACT

AIMS: Congenital mesoblastic nephroma (CMN) is histologically classified into classic, cellular and mixed subtypes. The aims of this study were to characterise the clinical, pathological and molecular features of a series of CMNs, and to determine the utility of pan-Trk and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) immunohistochemistry as surrogate markers for NTRK gene fusions and EGFR internal tandem duplications (ITDs). METHODS AND RESULTS: Twenty-two archival CMN cases (12 classic, five cellular, and five mixed) were tested for the ETV6-NTRK3 fusion and EGFR ITD transcripts by the use of reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and next-generation sequencing-based anchored multiplex PCR. All 12 classic CMNs had EGFR ITD. Of the five cellular CMNs, four had the ETV6-NTRK3 fusion and one had the KLHL7-BRAF fusion. Of the five mixed CMNs, four had EGFR ITD, and one had the ETV6-NTRK3 fusion. Pan-Trk immunoreactivity was 100% sensitive and 94.1% specific for the presence of NTRK rearrangement. However, EGFR staining was only 62.5% sensitive and 33.3% specific for EGFR ITD. CONCLUSIONS: EGFR ITD is a consistent genetic event in classic CMN. A majority of cellular CMNs have the ETV6-NTRK3 fusion. Rare cellular CMNs may harbour non-canonical mutations such as the KLHL7-BRAF fusion, which was found in one case. Mixed CMNs may have either EGFR ITD or the ETV6-NTRK3 fusion. Pan-Trk immunohistochemistry is a sensitive, albeit not perfectly specific, marker for NTRK rearrangement. EGFR immunohistochemistry is not helpful as a marker of EGFR ITD.


Subject(s)
Autoantigens/genetics , Kidney Neoplasms/genetics , Nephroma, Mesoblastic/genetics , Oncogene Proteins, Fusion/genetics , Proto-Oncogene Proteins B-raf/genetics , ErbB Receptors/genetics , Female , Gene Duplication , Humans , Infant , Infant, Newborn , Male , Mutation , Oncogene Fusion
12.
Mol Cancer ; 19(1): 24, 2020 Feb 04.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-32019547

ABSTRACT

After the publication of this work [1], the authors noticed that the affiliations were incorrectly provided. Updated affiliation section is provided in this paper.

13.
Mol Cancer ; 18(1): 188, 2019 12 23.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-31870368

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: N6-Methyladenosine (m6A) modification has been implicated in many biological processes. It is important for the regulation of messenger RNA (mRNA) stability, splicing, and translation. However, its role in cancer has not been studied in detail. Here we investigated the biological role and underlying mechanism of m6A modification in hepatoblastoma (HB). METHODS: We used Reverse transcription quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) and Western blotting to determine the expression of m6A related factors. And we clarified the effects of these factors on HB cells using cell proliferation assay, colony formation, apoptotic assay. Then we investigated of methyltransferase-like 13 (METTL3) and its correlation with clinicopathological features and used xenograft experiment to check METTL3 effect in vivo. m6A-Seq was used to profiled m6A transcriptome-wide in hepatoblastoma tumor tissue and normal tissue. Finally, methylated RNA immunoprecipitation (MeRIP) assay, RNA remaining assay to perform the regulator mechanism of MEETL3 on the target CTNNB1 in HB. RESULTS: In this research, we discovered that m6A modifications are increased in hepatoblastoma, and METTL3 is the main factor involved with aberrant m6A modification. We also profiled m6A across the whole transcriptome in hepatoblastoma tumor tissues and normal tissues. Our findings suggest that m6A is highly expressed in hepatoblastoma tumors. Also, m6A is enriched not only around the stop codon, but also around the coding sequence (CDS) region. Gene ontology analysis indicates that m6A mRNA methylation contributes significantly to regulate the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway. Reduced m6A methylation can lead to a decrease in expression and stability of the CTNNB1. CONCLUSION: Overall our findings suggest enhanced m6A mRNA methylation as an oncogenic mechanism in hepatoblastoma, METTL3 is significantly up-regulated in HB and promotes HB development. And identify CTNNB1 as a regulator of METTL3 guided m6A modification in HB.

14.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-31637018

ABSTRACT

O-linked-ß-N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) glycosylation (O-GlcNAcylation) and phosphorylation are critical posttranslational modifications that are involved in regulating the functions of proteins involved in tumorigenesis and the development of various solid tumors. However, a detailed characterization of the patterns of these modifications at the peptide or protein level in hepatoblastoma (HB), a highly malignant primary hepatic tumor with an extremely low incidence in children, has not been performed. Here, we examined O-GlcNAc-modified or phospho-modified peptides and proteins in HB through quantitative proteomic analysis of HB tissues and paired normal liver tissues. Our results identified 114 O-GlcNAcylated peptides belonging to 78 proteins and 3494 phosphorylated peptides in 2088 proteins. Interestingly, 41 proteins were modified by both O-GlcNAcylation and phosphorylation. These proteins are involved in multiple molecular and cellular processes, including chromatin remodeling, transcription, translation, transportation, and organelle organization. In addition, we verified the accuracy of the proteomics results and found a competitive inhibitory effect between O-GlcNAcylation and phosphorylation of HSPB1. Further, O-GlcNAcylation modification of HSPB1 promoted proliferation and enhanced the chemotherapeutic resistance of HB cell lines in vitro. Collectively, our research suggests that O-GlcNAc-modified and/or phospho-modified proteins may play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of HB.

15.
Front Oncol ; 9: 459, 2019.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-31249805

ABSTRACT

Neuroblastoma (NB) is the most common pediatric extra-cranial solid tumor with heterogeneous characteristics, and the prognosis of patients with high-risk NB is usually poor. Discovery of novel biomarkers for early detection and investigation of the underlying mechanisms governing invasion and metastasis of NB are urgently needed. Recently, exosomal microRNAs (miRNAs) have been shown to play vital regulatory or communication roles in the process of various types of cancers. However, the roles and mechanisms of exosomal miRNAs in NB remain unknown. Thus, the present study aims to investigate the detailed functions of tumor-derived exosomal miRNAs in progression and migration of NB in vivo and in vitro. By examining different exosomal miRNA expression profiles in the plasma of NB patients, we identified that the expression of hsa-miR199a-3p from exosomes was significantly upregulated, which was correlated with the severity of NB patients. Furthermore, we confirmed that exosomal hsa-miR199a-3p could facilitate proliferation and migration of NB via regulating NEDD4 expression. In summary, our data, for the first time, revealed that exosomal hsa-miR199a-3p could promote tumor proliferation and migration via decreasing NEDD4 expression in NB, suggesting that exosomal hsa-miR199a-3p may be applicated as a fast, easy, and non-invasive detection biomarker and contribute to the development of novel therapeutic strategies for NB in the future.

16.
Theranostics ; 9(3): 900-919, 2019.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-30809316

ABSTRACT

Circular RNAs (circRNAs), a novel class of endogenous RNAs, have been recently shown to participate in cellular development and several pathophysiological processes. The identification of dysregulated circRNAs and their function in cancer have attracted considerable attention. Nevertheless, the expression profile and role of circRNAs in human hepatoblastoma (HB) remain to be studied. In this report, we analyzed the expression prolife of circRNAs in HB tissues and identified circHMGCS1 (3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA synthase 1; hsa_circ_0072391) as a remarkably upregulated circRNA. Methods: The expression prolife of circRNAs in HB tissues were investigated through circRNA sequencing analyses. ISH and qRT-PCR assays were performed to measure the expression level of circHMGCS1. The effect of knocking down circHMGCS1 in HB cells in vitro and in vivo were evaluated by colony formation assay, flow cytometry, xenograft tumors assay and untargeted metabolomics assay. MRE analysis and dual luciferase assay were performed to explore the underlying molecular mechanisms. Results: HB patients with high circHMGCS1 expression have shorted overall survival. Knockdown of circHMGCS1 inhibits HB cells proliferation and induces apoptosis. CircHMGCS1 regulates IGF2 and IGF1R expression via sponging miR-503-5p, and affects the downstream PI3K-Akt signaling pathway to regulate HB cell proliferation and glutaminolysis. Conclusions: The circHMGCS1/miR-503-5p/IGF-PI3K-Akt axis regulates the proliferation, apoptosis and glutaminolysis of HB cells, implying that circHMGCS1 is a promising therapeutic target and prognostic marker for HB patients.


Subject(s)
Cell Proliferation , Glutamine/metabolism , Hepatoblastoma/pathology , Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Synthase/genetics , RNA, Circular/metabolism , Signal Transduction , Somatomedins/metabolism , Cell Line, Tumor , Gene Expression Profiling , Gene Expression Regulation , Hepatoblastoma/mortality , Hepatocytes/pathology , Humans , RNA, Circular/genetics , Survival Analysis
17.
Int J Cancer ; 144(1): 117-124, 2019 01 01.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-30098202

ABSTRACT

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is the most common histiocytosis with constitutive activation of the RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK (MAPKinase) cell signaling pathway. We analyzed 89 cases of BRAF and MAP2K1 mutations by Sanger sequencing, of which 18 cases showed that these two gene mutations are negative. Whole genome sequencing of suitable specimens in these negative cases revealed a translocation from the 3 intron of PLEKHA6 to the 13 intron of NTRK3 in one case. We identified that this translocation could cause a novel fusion mutation, PLEKHA6-NTRK3. Overexpression of the PLEKHA6-NTRK3 mutant in NIH 3T3 cells enhanced MAPKinase pathway activation, promote cell growth. Our result suggested that a new mutation need be included in LCH molecular screening panel to better define its prevalence in LCH.


Subject(s)
Histiocytosis, Langerhans-Cell/genetics , Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins/genetics , Receptor, trkC/genetics , Recombinant Fusion Proteins/genetics , Adolescent , Animals , Cell Proliferation/genetics , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Histiocytosis, Langerhans-Cell/pathology , Humans , Infant , Male , Mice , Mutation , NIH 3T3 Cells
18.
Pediatr Blood Cancer ; 65(2)2018 Feb.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-28921877

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Infantile fibrosarcoma (IFS) is a rare pediatric malignancy with relatively good prognosis, but the risk of progression or recurrence after therapy exists. To understand the immune microenvironment of IFS and determine if immunotherapy is a potential treatment, we analyzed T-cell responses in IFS tumors. PROCEDURE: IFS tumors were analyzed by immunohistochemistry and multicolor flow cytometry to characterize immune cell infiltration and function. Tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) were expanded in vitro and evaluated for recognition of autologous tumor cells. Real-time PCR was applied to evaluate tumor expression of chemokines/cytokines and tumor antigens. RESULTS: Significant infiltration of both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells was found in seven of 10 IFS but rarely found in age- and sex-matched rhabdomyosarcoma tumors. The TILs from recurrent IFS tumors expressed high levels of costimulatory molecules such as CD28, 4-1BB, and OX40, but little or no coinhibitory molecules such as PD-1 and CTLA4, Tim3, Lag3, and CD39. Upon activation, large portions of TILs produced IFN-γ and TNF-α. Eighteen out of 40 T cell lines generated from surgically removed tumors could recognize autologous tumor cells. Moreover, we found that IFS tumors expressed high levels of T-cell chemokines such as CXCL10 and CXCL16, and also classic tumor antigens such as CTAG2, GAGE, and NY-ESO-1, whose expression could be further enhanced by treatment with epigenetic modulator decitabine. CONCLUSIONS: IFS tumors are highly immunogenic and expansion of TILs followed by adoptive cell transfer could be a potential immunotherapy for IFS patients undergoing tumor recurrence.


Subject(s)
Antigens, Differentiation/immunology , CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes/immunology , CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/immunology , Cytokines/immunology , Fibrosarcoma/immunology , Neoplasm Proteins/immunology , Adolescent , CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes/pathology , CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/pathology , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Fibrosarcoma/pathology , Fibrosarcoma/therapy , Humans , Immunotherapy , Infant , Male
19.
Histopathology ; 72(2): 320-329, 2018 Jan.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-28833375

ABSTRACT

AIMS: Clear cell sarcoma of the kidney (CCSK) is a rare paediatric renal malignant tumour. The majority of CCSKs have internal tandem duplications (ITDs) of the BCOR gene, whereas a minority have the YWHAE-NUTM2 gene fusion. A third 'double-negative' (DN) category comprises CCSKs with neither BCOR ITDs nor YWHAE-NUTM2 fusion. The aim of this study was to characterise 11 histologically diagnosed CCSKs immunohistochemically (with CCND1, BCOR and CCNB3 stains) and genetically. METHODS AND RESULTS: By next-generation sequencing, 10 cases (90.9%) had BCOR exon 15 ITDs, with positive BCOR immunoreactivity being found in four (36%) or eight (72%) cases, depending on the antibody clone. By reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, none had the YWHAE-NUTM2 fusion. The DN case had a BCOR-CCNB3 fusion and strong nuclear CCNB3 and BCOR immunoreactivity. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction showed markedly elevated BCOR expression in this case, whereas BCOR ITD cases had lower levels of elevated BCOR expression. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of the CCSKs in our cohort had BCOR ITDs, and none had the YWHAE-NUTM2 fusion. We verified the strong, diffuse cyclin D1 (CCND1) immunoreactivity in CCSKs described in recent reports. BCOR immunoreactivity was not consistently positive in all CCSKs with BCOR ITDs, and therefore cannot be used as a diagnostic immunohistochemical stain to identify BCOR ITD cases. The DN case was a BCOR-CCNB3 fusion sarcoma. BCOR-CCNB3 sarcoma is typically a primary bone sarcoma affecting male adolescents, and this is the first report of it presenting in a kidney of a young child as a CCSK. The full spectrum of DN CCSKs awaits more comprehensive characterisation.


Subject(s)
Cyclin B/genetics , Kidney Neoplasms/genetics , Oncogene Proteins, Fusion/genetics , Proto-Oncogene Proteins/genetics , Repressor Proteins/genetics , Sarcoma, Clear Cell/genetics , Child , Child, Preschool , Exons , Female , Humans , Male
20.
Pediatr Dev Pathol ; 21(4): 418-422, 2018.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-28478739

ABSTRACT

We report a child who developed a TFE3/Xp11.2 translocation renal cell carcinoma (RCC) when he was 3 years and 3 months old, after previous treatment for infantile fibrosarcoma (IFS). When he was 3 months old, a left axilla mass has been detected, which was tan and solid, was 1.5 cm in greatest dimension, and composed of sheets of spindle cells that was positive for vimentin and fibronectin. Fluorescence in situ hybridization showed positive result in ETV6 gene rearrangements. The final diagnosis was IFS. After surgery and chemotherapy, he remained disease-free until 3 years; later, he was detected to have a tumor in right kidney which measured 2.5 × 2 × 1.5 cm. The tumor comprised clear-cell features that were arranged in papillary and adenoid architecture. The tumor cells were positive for TFE3 and CK. The diagnosis was TFE3/Xp11.2 translocation RCC. Previous research has reported that the radio/chemotherapy for the first tumor might be involved in the pathogenesis of translocation RCC. In our report, this is the first time the IFS is included in the disease spectrum which can cause secondary translocation RCC.


Subject(s)
Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Leucine Zipper Transcription Factors/genetics , Biomarkers, Tumor/genetics , Carcinoma, Renal Cell/genetics , Fibrosarcoma/therapy , Kidney Neoplasms/genetics , Neoplasms, Second Primary/genetics , Translocation, Genetic , Carcinoma, Renal Cell/diagnosis , Child, Preschool , Humans , Kidney Neoplasms/diagnosis , Male , Neoplasms, Second Primary/diagnosis
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