Functionally Null RAD51D Missense Mutation Associates Strongly with Ovarian Carcinoma.

RAD51D is a key player in DNA repair by homologous recombination (HR), and RAD51D truncating variant carriers have an increased risk for ovarian cancer. However, the contribution of nontruncating RAD51D variants to cancer predisposition remains uncertain. Using deep sequencing and case-control genotyping studies, we show that in French Canadians, the missense RAD51D variant c.620C>T;p.S207L is highly prevalent and is associated with a significantly increased risk for ovarian high-grade serous carcinoma (HGSC; 3.8% cases vs. 0.2% controls). The frequency of the p.S207L variant did not significantly differ from that of controls in breast, endometrial, pancreas, or colorectal adenocarcinomas. Functionally, we show that this mutation impairs HR by disrupting the RAD51D-XRCC2 interaction and confers PARP inhibitor sensitivity. These results highlight the importance of a functional RAD51D-XRCC2 interaction to promote HR and prevent the development of HGSC. This study identifies c.620C>T;p.S207L as the first bona fide pathogenic RAD51D missense cancer susceptibility allele and supports the use of targeted PARP-inhibitor therapies in ovarian cancer patients carrying deleterious missense RAD51D variants. Cancer Res; 77(16); 4517-29. ©2017 AACR.

Germline and somatic FGFR1 abnormalities in dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumors.

Dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumor (DNET) is a benign brain tumor associated with intractable drug-resistant epilepsy. In order to identify underlying genetic alterations and molecular mechanisms, we examined three family members affected by multinodular DNETs as well as 100 sporadic tumors from 96 patients, which had been referred to us as DNETs. We performed whole-exome sequencing on 46 tumors and targeted sequencing for hotspot FGFR1 mutations and BRAF p.V600E was used on the remaining samples. FISH, copy number variation assays and Sanger sequencing were used to validate the findings. By whole-exome sequencing of the familial cases, we identified a novel germline FGFR1 mutation, p.R661P. Somatic activating FGFR1 mutations (p.N546K or p.K656E) were observed in the tumor samples and further evidence for functional relevance was obtained by in silico modeling. The FGFR1 p.K656E mutation was confirmed to be in cis with the germline p.R661P variant. In 43 sporadic cases, in which the diagnosis of DNET could be confirmed on central blinded neuropathology review, FGFR1 alterations were also frequent and mainly comprised intragenic tyrosine kinase FGFR1 duplication and multiple mutants in cis (25/43; 58.1 %) while BRAF p.V600E alterations were absent (0/43). In contrast, in 53 cases, in which the diagnosis of DNET was not confirmed, FGFR1 alterations were less common (10/53; 19 %; p < 0.0001) and hotspot BRAF p.V600E (12/53; 22.6 %) (p < 0.001) prevailed. We observed overexpression of phospho-ERK in FGFR1 p.R661P and p.N546K mutant expressing HEK293 cells as well as FGFR1 mutated tumor samples, supporting enhanced MAP kinase pathway activation under these conditions. In conclusion, constitutional and somatic FGFR1 alterations and MAP kinase pathway activation are key events in the pathogenesis of DNET. These findings point the way towards existing targeted therapies.

A recurrent PDGFRB mutation causes familial infantile myofibromatosis.

Infantile myofibromatosis (IM) is the most common benign fibrous tumor of soft tissues affecting young children. By using whole-exome sequencing, RNA sequencing, and targeted sequencing, we investigated germline and tumor DNA in individuals from four distinct families with the familial form of IM and in five simplex IM cases with no previous family history of this disease. We identified a germline mutation c.1681C>T (p.Arg561Cys) in platelet-derived growth factor receptor ß (PDGFRB) in all 11 affected individuals with familial IM, although none of the five individuals with nonfamilial IM had mutations in this gene. We further identified a second heterozygous mutation in PDGFRB in two myofibromas from one of the affected familial cases, indicative of a potential second hit in this gene in the tumor. PDGFR-ß promotes growth of mesenchymal cells, including blood vessels and smooth muscles, which are affected in IM. Our findings indicate p.Arg561Cys substitution in PDGFR-ß as a cause of the dominant form of this disease. They provide a rationale for further investigations of this specific mutation and gene to assess the benefits of targeted therapies against PDGFR-ß in aggressive life-threatening familial forms of the disease.

Roles of the equatorial tyrosyl iron ligand of protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase in catalysis.

The active site Fe(III) of protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase (3,4-PCD) from Pseudomonas putida is ligated axially by Tyr447 and His462 and equatorially by Tyr408, His460, and OH(-). Tyr447 and OH(-) are displaced as protocatechuate (3,4-dihydroxybenzoate, PCA) chelates the iron and appear to serve as in situ bases to promote this process. The role(s) of Tyr408 is (are) explored here using mutant enzymes that exhibit less than 0.1% wild-type activity. The X-ray crystal structures of the mutants and their PCA complexes show that the new shorter residues in the 408 position cannot ligate the iron and instead interact with the iron through solvents. Moreover, PCA binds as a monodentate rather than a bidentate ligand, and Tyr447 fails to dissociate. Although the new residues at position 408 do not directly bind to the iron, large changes in the spectroscopic and catalytic properties are noted among the mutant enzymes. Resonance Raman features show that the Fe-O bond of the monodentate 4-hydroxybenzoate (4HB) inhibitor complex is significantly stronger in the mutants than in wild-type 3,4-PCD. Transient kinetic studies show that PCA and 4HB bind to 3,4-PCD in a fast, reversible step followed by a step in which coordination to the metal occurs; the latter process is at least 50-fold slower in the mutant enzymes. It is proposed that, in wild-type 3,4-PCD, the Lewis base strength of Tyr408 lowers the Lewis acidity of the iron to foster the rapid exchange of anionic ligands during the catalytic cycle. Accordingly, the increase in Lewis acidity of the iron caused by substitution of this residue by solvent tends to make the iron substitution inert. Tyr447 cannot be released to allow formation of the usual dianionic PCA chelate complex with the active site iron, and the rate of electrophilic attack by O(2) becomes rate limiting overall. The structures of the PCA complexes of these mutant enzymes show that hydrogen-bonding interactions between the new solvent ligand and the new second-sphere residue in position 408 allow this residue to significantly influence the spectroscopic and kinetic properties of the enzymes.