3311 results for "*geneti*"

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• Whole Exome Sequencing Study of TGFΒ Pathway Genes in HCV Liver Fibrosis

  Despite the astonishing progress in treating chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection with direct-acting antiviral agents, liver fibrosis remains a major health concern in HCV infected patients, in particular due to the treatment cost and insufficient HCV screening in many countries. Only a fraction of patients with chronic HCV infection develop liver fibrosis. While there is evidence that host genetic factors are involved in the development of liver fibrosis, the common variants identified so far, in particular by genome-wide association studies, were found to have limited effects. Here, we conducted an exome association study in 88 highly selected HCV-infected patients with and without fibrosis. A strategy focusing on TGF-β pathway genes revealed an enrichment in rare variants of the endoglin gene (ENG) in fibrosis patients. Replication studies in additional cohorts (617 patients) identified one specific ENG variant, Thr5Met, with an overall odds ratio for fibrosis development in carriers of 3.04 (1.39-6.69). Our results suggest that endoglin, a key player in TGF-β signaling, is involved in HCV-related liver fibrogenesis.

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• Identifying novel DNA damage response genes in radiosensitive individuals

  Ionizing radiation is an effective therapeutic agent for cancer treatment as well as a potent carcinogen. Sensitivity to the cell-killing effects of radiation can vary across human population with a subset of individuals displaying extreme hypersensitivity. It is usually attributable to inherited defects in DNA damage response pathways. The present study was designed to elucidate the genetic basis of variation in hypersensitivity to radiation exposure through exome sequencing of radiosensitive individuals, with the ultimate goal of identifying genes with the most significant effects on cellular DNA damage responses. The study participants included subjects referred for clinical testing for Ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T), Nijmegen Breakage Syndrome (NBS) or Ligase IV Syndrome. These are rare, recessive genetic disorders and hypersensitivity to radiation exposure is a common phenotype among individuals affected by all the three disorders. The study participants exhibited phenotypic characteristics similar to individuals with A-T, NBS or Ligase IV Syndrome, but lacked the causative mutations in ATM (GeneID:472) or NBN (GeneID:4683) genes. For further validation of the radiation sensitivity phenotype among the enrolled subjects, B-lymphoblastoid cells lines were established for each subject from peripheral blood lymphocytes. Each cell line was evaluated for displaying impaired survival rates relative to normal controls after exposure to ionizing radiation. 53 subjects with validated phenotype were finally included in the study and DNA extracted from their B-lymphoblastoid cell lines was used for exome sequencing. This sequencing data for radiation sensitive subjects is being made available in the dbGaP. It is hoped that this resource will be beneficial for researchers who wish to further investigate components of human cellular DNA damage response pathways and/or genetic architecture underlying radiation hypersensitivity. This data may also aid in the rational design of new radiosensitizing or radioprotective agents.

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• Pilot Sequencing Study: DNA Hydroxymethylation and Gene Expression in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells in Healthy Human Aging

  This study was a pilot analysis of samples of human peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMCs) from 10 young (23-30 years) and 10 older (68-76 years) healthy Caucasian female volunteers. Whole genome sequencing was performed to assess multiple epigenetic mechanisms and gene expression, including 5hmC-capture sequencing and RNA-sequencing, followed by integrative analyses to identify regions and genes associated with age.

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• PAK4 inhibition improves PD-1 blockade immunotherapy

  Introduction with rationale and aims for study Immune checkpoint blockade therapies have significantly altered the current landscape of cancer treatment. However, this immunotherapy still fails more often than it succeeds. There are now evidences that the lack of tumour infiltration by immune cells is the main mechanism of primary resistance to PD‐1 blockade therapies for cancer. It has been postulated that cancer cell‐intrinsic mechanisms may actively exclude T cells from tumours, suggesting that the finding of actionable molecules that could be inhibited to increase T cell infiltration may synergize with checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapy. With the idea of finding potential drivers of immune exclusion, we performed RNA sequencing analysis of biopsies from melanoma patients and compared the transcriptomic differences of samples that where infiltrated with those that did not have immune infiltration. Methods RNAseq analysis of gene expressions on biopsies from melanoma patients treated with checkpoint blockade were analysed. We focused on the variable of "infiltration: yes or no,", e.g. tumors that were well infiltrated by immune cells with those that kept immune cells out. Sequencing revealed a list of genes whose expression differed between the infiltrated and noninfiltrated tumors. The kinase PAK4 stood out as a good candidate for inhibition treatment in the future as it was consistently enriched in the samples without immune infiltration. To test whether immunotherapy would work better if we deleted PAK4, we first knocked out PAK4, using CRISPR‐Cas9, in the ‐resistant melanoma cell line, B16. Then they injected the melanoma cells into mice and observed that PAK4 KO tumours now responded to PD‐1 blockade. In order to elucidate whether pharmacological inhibition of PAK4 could recapitulate the results observed in the B16 PAK4 KO tumours, we obtained the PAK4 inhibitor, KPT-9274, from Karyopharm Therapeutics. Indeed, inhibiting PAK4 in combination with anti‐PD‐1 immunotherapy significantly slowed the growth of the B16 melanomas more than either drug alone. Results and Conclusions Transcriptomic analysis of melanoma tumors that were well infiltrated by immune cells with those that kept immune cells out revealed a list of genes whose expression differed between the infiltrated and non-infiltrated tumours. The result suggests that p21 activated kinase 4 (PAK4) is enriched in non-responding tumour biopsies with low T cell and dendritic cell infiltration. In addition, PAK4 decreased WNT activity, a signalling pathway that has previously been involved in immune exclusion. In mouse models, genetic deletion of PAK4 increased T cell infiltration and reversed resistance to PD‐1 blockade in a CD8 T cell-dependent manner. Furthermore, combination of with the PAK4 inhibitor, KPT-9274, improved anti‐tumour responses compared to anti‐PD‐1 alone. Therefore, high PAK4 expression is correlated with low T cell and dendritic cell infiltration and lack of response to PD‐1 blockade, which could be reversed with PAK4 inhibition. The data establish a rationale for targeting this kinase with inhibitors in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors for patients. Future work and data that we can anticipate for this study Oncogenic signalling pathways and specially the WNT signalling pathway, have been associated with lack of immune infiltration and resistance to PD‐1 blockade therapies. Here, we show that PAK4 overcome resistance to PD‐1 blockade while significantly decreases WNT signalling activity. Therefore, it constitutes the first potential druggable target that is able to reverse oncogenic driven immune cell exclusion. However, the fully mechanism whereby PAK4 sensitizes tumours to immunotherapy remains to be fully elucidated. It is necessary to address whether PAK4 inhibition overcomes resistance through WNT signalling inhibition or if other signalling pathways are involved in the observed phenotype.

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• Genomic Characterization of Brain Metastases from Lung Cancer

  Metastatic disease to the brain is associated with a poor prognosis. Our understanding of the genetic drivers of metastasis remain limited. Whole-exome sequencing was performed from brain metastases from lung adenocarcinoma to identify putative drivers of metastatic progression.

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• NHLBI TOPMed: SubPopulations and InteRmediate Outcome Measures In COPD Study (SPIROMICS)

  Subpopulations and Intermediate Outcome Measures in COPD Study Description Subpopulations and intermediate outcome measures in COPD study (SPIROMICS) supports the prospective collection and analysis of phenotypic, biomarker, genetic, genomic, and clinical data from subjects with COPD for the purpose of identifying subpopulations and intermediate outcome measures. It is funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and is coordinated by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Molecular fingerprinting and extensive subject phenotyping will be performed to identify disease subpopulations and to identify and validate surrogate markers of disease severity, which will be useful as intermediate outcome measures for future clinical trials. Secondary aims are to clarify the natural history of COPD, to develop bioinformatic resources that will enable the utilization and sharing of data in studies of COPD and related diseases, and to create a collection of clinical, biomarker, radiographic, and genetic data that can be used by external investigators for other studies of COPD. Participating Institutions: Research participants for SPIROMICS will be enrolled, phenotyped, and followed at twelve SPIROMICS Clinical Centers: Columbia University, Temple University, Johns Hopkins University, Wake Forest University, University of Michigan, University of Illinois at Chicago, University of Iowa, University of Utah, National Jewish Health, University of California at San Francisco, and University of California at Los Angeles. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill serves as the Genomics and Informatics Center. The Radiology Reading Center is based at the University of Iowa. The PFT Reading Center is based at the University of California at Los Angeles. Study Design: SPIROMICS is a prospective cohort study that enrolled approximately 2,981 participants at twelve clinical centers over five years. Participants are distributed across four enrollment strata (i.e., Never-smokers, Smokers without COPD, Mild/Moderate COPD, and Severe COPD). Study Visits: Participants have up to four in-person visits (Baseline and Annual Clinic Visits at years 1, 2, 3 after Baseline). Study questionnaires and spirometry are completed at all main study visits. Blood and urine samples are collected at visits 1, 2, and 4. Sputum samples are collected at Visit 1. The CT scans are completed and Baseline and Visit 2. Participants also receive quarterly follow-up calls to assess health status and determine if an exacerbation has occurred. Substudies Bronchoscopy and Immunophenotyping Substudy The Bronchoscopy Substudy will enroll 50 subjects per site, for a total of 300 participants. These participants will be recruited across all four study strata. This substudy includes two study visits. During the first visit, sputum samples are collected for Immunophenotyping analysis at the Immunophenotyping Core Lab based at the University of Michigan. Participants then return for a second visit during which samples are collected via bronchoscopy, including bronchoalveolar lavage, epithelial brushings and bronchial biopsies. Immunophenotyping analysis is also conducted on BAL and blood collected during the bronchoscopy study visit. Repeatability Substudy The entire baseline clinic visit was repeated on 98 volunteers to determine reliability of measurement procedures. All baseline study-related procedures and questionnaires, including the CT scan, were re-administered and new samples of blood, urine, saliva, and sputum were collected. Field center staff processed these biospecimen samples according to the same protocol. Exacerbation Substudy The Exacerbation Substudy is a prospective, longitudinal observational study of up to 400 participants, which will allow the assessment of participant-driven health care utilization (HCU) events and symptom-defined exacerbation events over time. HCU-driven events are defined by change in medical treatment in response to a perceived COPD Exacerbation. Symptom-based events will be defined by using EXACT-PRO (EXacerbations of Chronic Pulmonary Disease Tool - Patient Reported Outcome), a daily symptom diary developed to measure the frequency, severity, and duration of exacerbations in clinical trials. All participants are provided with a PDA on which to complete the diary. Participants reporting a possible COPD exacerbation will be brought into the study clinic for a study visit to collect biological specimens and questionnaire data. The overall objectives of the Exacerbation Substudy are to: Obtain clinical data and specimens on SPIROMICS participants before and during an acute COPD exacerbation defined by Health care utilization triggered by the subject, or Symptomatic change (triggered by an EXACT defined threshold) Describe symptomatic changes occurring around HCU and symptom-defined (EXACT) events and their relationship to clinical and specimen data, Characterize the non-exacerbation "stable" state in COPD using the EXACT, including: Symptom variability (EXACT), Clinical data and specimen parameters during a stable state (baseline), The relationship between clinical and specimen data and symptom severity and variability. Explore the characteristics of stable patients, defined as those who do not experience HCU or symptom-defined (EXACT) events during the sub-study period, using baseline clinical data and specimens, and compare these characteristics with patients who experience HCU and/or symptom-defined events. Examine the relationship between HCU and symptom-defined exacerbation frequency during the first one-year period of follow-up for exacerbations and health outcomes, including 12-month change in lung function and COPD health status, and longer-term morbidity and mortality, with the latter derived from long-term data from the larger SPIROMICS study.

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• National Institutes of Health H3Africa African Collaborative Center for Microbiome and Genomics Research (ACCME)

  The African Collaborative Center for Microbiome and Genomics Research is a multi-institutional collaborative research project. The objectives of the project are to collaborate and implement high impact integrative epidemiology and genomics research into discovery of biomarkers associated with cervical carcinogenesis. Specifically ACCME links and leverages existing funded research and program activities at the collaborating institutions to study the interaction between vaginal microbiome, host genetic factors and molecular variants of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) to determine correlates of viral persistence in the causal pathway of cervical cancer, a major cause of preventable mortality in Nigeria and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa. This research offers several opportunities to advance understanding of cervical carcinogenesis, viral oncogenesis, new biomarker discovery and risk stratification by genotype in a cohort of African women. Sponsorship: This project is sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH)

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• Neurogenetic Investigations of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

  Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a disabling early-onset neuropsychiatric disorder with a clear genetic contribution to risk but unclear underlying pathophysiology, which has hindered the development of new treatments and interventions. This study uses high-throughput sequencing approaches to identify OCD risk genes, detect gene expression differences in OCD, and determine epigenetic signatures driving gene expression in OCD brain. These studies will improve our understanding of the underlying mechanisms of OCD and identify points of traction for mechanistic studies in model systems, ultimately leading to novel therapeutics, and reducing the significant morbidity and mortality associated with this disabling illness. Furthermore, insights gained in these studies can inform gene discovery approaches to other complex neuropsychiatric disorders.

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• National Cancer Institute Clinical and Laboratory Analysis of Familial Cancer

  The purpose of this study is to continue the analysis begun on 09C0079 which was focused on identification of the genetic mutation associated with a new gastric polyposis syndrome, Gastric Adenocarcinoma and Proximal Polyposis of the Stomach (GAPPS). GAPPS, first described in 2012, is an autosomal dominant gastric polyposis syndrome that confers a substantial risk for gastric adenocarcinoma. The GAPPS phenotype consists of a carpeting of greater than 100 fundic gland polyps (FGPs) in the oxyntic mucosa of the gastric body and fundus, with antral sparing with some FGPs displaying high-grade dysplasia. This is in contrast to sporadic FGPs that are benign, most often are not associated with high-grade dysplasia though low-grade dysplasia has been reported, and are fewer in number. Gastric FGPs have been found to be associated with Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP) and attenuated FAP, which is an autosomal dominant condition associated with germ line mutations in APC which confers a phenotype consisting of multiple (>100) adenomatous polyps in the colon and rectum developing after the first decade of life. FGPs are reported to occur in 12-84% of patients with FAP, whereas sporadic FGPs are identified in ~5% of patients undergoing upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. Gastric adenocarcinoma arising from FGPs in individuals with FAP have been reported. Other manifestations of FAP and AFAP include polyps in the upper gastrointestinal tract, congenital hypertrophy of retinal pigment epithelium, osteomas and epidermoid cysts, supernumerary teeth, desmoid formation, and other malignancies such as thyroid, small bowel cancer, hepatoblastoma, and medulloblastoma. Thus far there are no reports in GAPPS of polyposis arising in the esophagus, gastric antrum, pylorus, small intestine, or colon.

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• DNA Methylomic Profiling of Preeclampsia Across Pregnancy

  Preeclampsia (PE) is a hypertensive, multi-system disorder of pregnancy that significantly impacts maternal and infant morbidity/mortality across the globe, as it increases risk of cardiovascular disease and remains a leading killer of women and babies. Despite PE's significant impact on morbidity/mortality, there are no clinically reliable biomarkers that predict PE. DNA methylation, a dynamic regulator of gene expression, represents a mechanism that is known to be impacted by the environment. Because PE stems from a dysfunctional placenta that releases debris into the maternal circulation, we hypothesized that the in-vivo environment created by the dysfunctional placenta will impact DNA methylation in the maternal circulation, and that these blood-based methylation profiles would serve as a systemic biomarker of the maternal response to placental dysfunction. Our overall objective of this pilot study was to longitudinally characterize DNA methylation profiles across the three trimesters of pregnancy in the maternal blood at time points before and after clinically overt PE using a targeted (endoglin and endoglin-related genes) and a discovery-based approach. For this pilot study, 28 normotensive control participants and 28 PE case participants enrolled in the NICHD funded pregnancy study entitled Prenatal Exposures and Preeclampsia Prevention: Mechanisms of Preeclampsia and the Impact of Obesity (PEPP3; P01HD30367) were 1:1 frequency matched on self-reported race, pre-pregnancy BMI, smoking history, and gestational age at sample collection. Methylation data were collected with the Infinium® MethylationEPIC Beadchip. Methylation assay data collection were carried out at Johns Hopkins University Genetic Resources Core Facility, The SNP Center, Baltimore, MD, USA.

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