RESUMO
Posterior fossa A (PFA) ependymomas are lethal malignancies of the hindbrain in infants and toddlers. Lacking highly recurrent somatic mutations, PFA ependymomas are proposed to be epigenetically driven tumors for which model systems are lacking. Here we demonstrate that PFA ependymomas are maintained under hypoxia, associated with restricted availability of specific metabolites to diminish histone methylation, and increase histone demethylation and acetylation at histone 3 lysine 27 (H3K27). PFA ependymomas initiate from a cell lineage in the first trimester of human development that resides in restricted oxygen. Unlike other ependymomas, transient exposure of PFA cells to ambient oxygen induces irreversible cellular toxicity. PFA tumors exhibit a low basal level of H3K27me3, and, paradoxically, inhibition of H3K27 methylation specifically disrupts PFA tumor growth. Targeting metabolism and/or the epigenome presents a unique opportunity for rational therapy for infants with PFA ependymoma.
Assuntos
Ependimoma/genética , Ependimoma/metabolismo , Epigenoma/genética , Neoplasias Infratentoriais/genética , Neoplasias Infratentoriais/metabolismo , Animais , Neoplasias Encefálicas/genética , Neoplasias Encefálicas/metabolismo , Linhagem Celular , Proliferação de Células/genética , Metilação de DNA/genética , Epigenômica/métodos , Histonas/genética , Histonas/metabolismo , Humanos , Lactente , Lisina/genética , Lisina/metabolismo , Masculino , Camundongos Endogâmicos C57BL , Mutação/genéticaRESUMO
Sonic hedgehog medulloblastoma encompasses a clinically and molecularly diverse group of cancers of the developing central nervous system. Here, we use unbiased sequencing of the transcriptome across a large cohort of 250 tumors to reveal differences among molecular subtypes of the disease, and demonstrate the previously unappreciated importance of non-coding RNA transcripts. We identify alterations within the cAMP dependent pathway (GNAS, PRKAR1A) which converge on GLI2 activity and show that 18% of tumors have a genetic event that directly targets the abundance and/or stability of MYCN. Furthermore, we discover an extensive network of fusions in focally amplified regions encompassing GLI2, and several loss-of-function fusions in tumor suppressor genes PTCH1, SUFU and NCOR1. Molecular convergence on a subset of genes by nucleotide variants, copy number aberrations, and gene fusions highlight the key roles of specific pathways in the pathogenesis of Sonic hedgehog medulloblastoma and open up opportunities for therapeutic intervention.
Assuntos
Neoplasias Cerebelares/genética , Regulação Neoplásica da Expressão Gênica , Proteínas Hedgehog/genética , Meduloblastoma/genética , Transcriptoma , Adolescente , Adulto , Criança , Pré-Escolar , Feminino , Redes Reguladoras de Genes , Variação Genética , Humanos , Lactente , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Transdução de Sinais/genética , Adulto JovemRESUMO
Recurrent medulloblastoma and ependymoma are universally lethal, with no approved targeted therapies and few candidates presently under clinical evaluation. Nearly all recurrent medulloblastomas and posterior fossa group A (PFA) ependymomas are located adjacent to and bathed by the cerebrospinal fluid, presenting an opportunity for locoregional therapy, bypassing the blood-brain barrier. We identify three cell-surface targets, EPHA2, HER2 and interleukin 13 receptor α2, expressed on medulloblastomas and ependymomas, but not expressed in the normal developing brain. We validate intrathecal delivery of EPHA2, HER2 and interleukin 13 receptor α2 chimeric antigen receptor T cells as an effective treatment for primary, metastatic and recurrent group 3 medulloblastoma and PFA ependymoma xenografts in mouse models. Finally, we demonstrate that administration of these chimeric antigen receptor T cells into the cerebrospinal fluid, alone or in combination with azacytidine, is a highly effective therapy for multiple metastatic mouse models of group 3 medulloblastoma and PFA ependymoma, thereby providing a rationale for clinical trials of these approaches in humans.