WNT10B mutations associated with isolated dental anomalies.

Isolated hypodontia is the most common human malformation. It is caused by heterozygous variants in various genes, with heterozygous WNT10A variants being the most common cause. WNT10A and WNT10B are paralogs that likely evolved from a common ancestral gene after its duplication. Recently, an association of WNT10B variants with oligodontia (severe tooth agenesis) has been reported. We performed mutational analysis in our cohort of 256 unrelated Thai families with various kinds of isolated dental anomalies. In 7 families afflicted with dental anomalies we detected 4 heterozygous missense variants in WNT10B. We performed whole exome sequencing in the patients who had WNT10B mutations and found no mutations in other known hypodontia-associated genes, including WNT10A, MSX1, PAX9, EDA, AXIN2, EDAR, EDARADD, LPR6, TFAP2B, LPR6, NEMO, KRT17, and GREM2. Our findings indicate that the variants c.475G>C [p.(Ala159Pro)], found in 4 families, and c.1052G>A [p.(Arg351His)], found in 1 family, are most probably causative. They also show that WNT10B variants are associated not only with oligodontia and isolated tooth agenesis, but also with microdontia, short tooth roots, dental pulp stones, and taurodontism.

Gene discovery in oral squamous cell carcinoma through the Head and Neck Cancer Genome Anatomy Project: confirmation by microarray analysis.

The near completion of the human genome project and the recent development of novel, highly sensitive high-throughput techniques have now afforded the unique opportunity to perform a comprehensive molecular characterization of normal, precancerous, and malignant cells, including those derived from squamous carcinomas of the head and neck (HNSCC). As part of these efforts, representative cDNA libraries from patient sets, comprising of normal and malignant squamous epithelium, were generated and contributed to the Head and Neck Cancer Genome Anatomy Project (HN-CGAP). Initial analysis of the sequence information indicated the existence of many novel genes in these libraries [Oral Oncol 36 (2000) 474]. In this study, we surveyed the available sequence information using bioinformatic tools and identified a number of known genes that were differentially expressed in normal and malignant epithelium. Furthermore, this effort resulted in the identification of 168 novel genes. Comparison of these clones to the human genome identified clusters in loci that were not previously recognized as being altered in HNSCC. To begin addressing which of these novel genes are frequently expressed in HNSCC, their DNA was used to construct an oral-cancer-specific microarray, which was used to hybridize alpha-(33)P dCTP labeled cDNA derived from five HNSCC patient sets. Initial assessment demonstrated 10 clones to be highly expressed (>2-fold) in the normal squamous epithelium, while 14 were highly represented in the malignant counterpart, in three of the five patient sets, thus suggesting that a subset of these newly discovered transcripts might be highly expressed in this tumor type. These efforts, together with other multi-institutional genomic and proteomic initiatives are expected to contribute to the complete understanding of the molecular pathogenesis of HNSCCs, thus helping to identify new markers for the early detection of preneoplastic lesions and novel targets for pharmacological intervention in this disease.

Proteomic profiling of the cancer microenvironment by antibody arrays.

Critical changes in protein expression that enable tumors to initiate and progress originate in the local tissue microenvironment, and there are increasing indications that these microenvironmental alterations in protein expression play critical roles in shaping and directing this process. As a model to better understand how patterns of protein expression shape the tissue microenvironment, we analyzed protein expression in tissue derived from squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity through an antibody microarray approach for high-throughput proteomic analysis. Utilizing laser capture microdissection to procure total protein from specific microscopic cellular populations, we demonstrate that quantitative, and potentially qualitative, differences in expression patterns of multiple proteins within epithelial cells reproducibly correlate with oral cavity tumor progression. Furthermore, differential expression of multiple proteins was also found in stromal cells surrounding and adjacent to regions of diseased epithelium that directly correlated with tumor progression of the epithelium. Most of the proteins identified in both cell types are involved in signal transduction pathways, thus we hypothesize that extensive molecular communication involving complex cellular signaling between epithelium and stroma play a key role in driving oral cavity cancer progression.

New approaches to the understanding of the molecular basis of oral cancer.

Cancers of the oral cavity, salivary glands, larynx, and pharynx, collectively referred to as squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck (HNSCC), are the sixth most common cancer among men in the developed world. The prognosis of HNSCC patients is still poor, which reflects the fact that although the risk factors for HNSCC are well-recognized, very little is known about the molecular mechanisms responsible for this malignancy. This review describes some of the current efforts and technological advances that have focused on the creation of a complete information infrastructure for genes expressed during squamous cell carcinogenesis. These include: the recently described HNSCC-specific chromosomal alterations (cCAP); the Head and Neck Cancer Genome Anatomy Project (HN-CGAP), whose goal is the systematic identification and cataloguing of known and novel genes expressed during tumor development; and the use of laser-capture microdissection (LCM), which is pivotal for the comprehensive molecular characterization of normal, pre-cancerous, and malignant cells by means of DNA-array technology. The latter provides the means for the analysis of expression patterns of thousands of genes simultaneously. The use of LCM for proteomics and DNA analysis is also included in this review. These revolutionary approaches are likely to have an unprecedented impact on cancer biology, and provide exciting opportunities to unravel the still-unknown mechanisms involved in squamous cell carcinogenesis. They are also expected to provide a molecular blueprint for HNSCC, thus helping to identify suitable markers for the early detection of preneoplastic lesions, as well as novel targets for pharmacological intervention in this disease.

Gene expression profiles in squamous cell carcinomas of the oral cavity: use of laser capture microdissection for the construction and analysis of stage-specific cDNA libraries.

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is the sixth most common cancer among men in the developed world affecting the oral cavity, salivary glands, larynx and pharynx. Utilizing tissue from patients with HNSCC, we sought to systematically identify and catalog genes expressed in HNSCC progression. Here, we demonstrate the successful use of laser capture microdissection for procuring pure populations of cells from patient tissue sets comprised of oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCCs) and matching normal tissue. From the estimated 5000 cells procured for each sample, we were able to extract total RNA (14.7-18.6 ng) of sufficient quality to transcribe GAPDH by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The RNA was used for the synthesis of blunt-ended, double-strand complementary DNAs (cDNAs) by oligo (dT)-mediated reverse transcription, followed by addition of linkers. Primers specific for these linkers with uracil deglycosylase-compatible ends were used to amplify these cDNAs by PCR and the product was subcloned into the pAMP10 cloning vector. Ninety-six clones from each of six libraries were randomly sequenced and results indicated that 76-96% of the inserts represent either anonymous expressed sequence tags (ESTs) (25-48%), known genes (9-29%) or novel sequences (27-51%), respectively, with very little redundancy. These results demonstrate that high quality, representative cDNA libraries can be generated from microdissected OSCC tissue. Furthermore, these finding suggest the existence of at least 132 novel genes expressed in our cDNA libraries, which may have a role in the pathogenesis of HNSCC, and may represent novel markers for early detection as well as targets for pharmacological intervention in this disease.

Distinct pattern of expression of differentiation and growth-related genes in squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck revealed by the use of laser capture microdissection and cDNA arrays.

Although risk factors for squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck (HNSCC) are well recognized, very little is known about the molecular mechanisms responsible for this malignancy. Furthermore, the ability to investigate gene expression profiles at different stages of tumor progression is usually limited by the remarkable heterogeneity of these neoplastic lesions. Here, we show the successful use of laser capture microdissection (LCM) to procure specific cell populations. The 5000 cells from representative sets of HNSCC and their matching normal tissues are sufficient to extract RNA of high integrity for the synthesis of labeled amplified cDNA probes which can then be hybridized to these membranes arrayed with known human cancer-related cDNAs. Furthermore, when compared to normal tissues, we demonstrate a consistent decrease in expression of differentiation markers such as cytokeratins, and an increase in the expression of a number of signal transducing and cell cycle regulatory molecules, as well as growth and angiogenic factors and tissue degrading proteases. Unexpectedly, we also found that most HNSCC overexpress members of the wnt and notch growth and differentiation regulatory system, thus suggesting that the wnt and notch pathways may contribute in squamous cell carcinogenesis. This experimental approach may facilitate the identification candidate markers for the early detection of preneoplastic lesions, as well as novel targets for pharmacological intervention in this disease.