Uniparental Genetic Heritage of Belarusians: Encounter of Rare Middle Eastern Matrilineages with a Central European Mitochondrial DNA Pool

Ethnic Belarusians make up more than 80% of the nine and half million people inhabiting the Republic of Belarus. Belarusians together with Ukrainians and Russians represent the East Slavic linguistic group, largest both in numbers and territory, inhabiting East Europe alongside Baltic-, Finno-Permic- and Turkic-speaking people. Till date, only a limited number of low resolution genetic studies have been performed on this population. Therefore, with the phylogeographic analysis of 565 Y-chromosomes and 267 mitochondrial DNAs from six well covered geographic sub-regions of Belarus we strove to complement the existing genetic profile of eastern Europeans. Our results reveal that around 80% of the paternal Belarusian gene pool is composed of R1a, I2a and N1c Y-chromosome haplogroups – a profile which is very similar to the two other eastern European populations – Ukrainians and Russians. The maternal Belarusian gene pool encompasses a full range of West Eurasian haplogroups and agrees well with the genetic structure of central-east European populations. Our data attest that latitudinal gradients characterize the variation of the uniparentally transmitted gene pools of modern Belarusians. In particular, the Y-chromosome reflects movements of people in central-east Europe, starting probably as early as the beginning of the Holocene. Furthermore, the matrilineal legacy of Belarusians retains two rare mitochondrial DNA haplogroups, N1a3 and N3, whose phylogeographies were explored in detail after de novo sequencing of 20 and 13 complete mitogenomes, respectively, from all over Eurasia. Our phylogeographic analyses reveal that two mitochondrial DNA lineages, N3 and N1a3, both of Middle Eastern origin, might mark distinct events of matrilineal gene flow to Europe: during the mid-Holocene period and around the Pleistocene-Holocene transition, respectively

Identification of alterations in the nucleotide sequence of the chromatin remodeling gene PBRM1 in clear cell renal cell carcinoma patients

Kidney cancer is a heterogeneous group of malignant tumors, the vast majority of which are renal cell carcinomas (RCC) of various morphological types, of which the most common is the clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). Particular attention in the carcinogenesis of the ccRCC is given to a number of tumor suppressor genes located on the short arm of the third chromosome. One of these genes, which are inactivated in the case of ccRCC is the PBRM1 gene encoding the PBAF SWI/SNF subunit of the chromatin remodeling complex, BAF180. The PBRM1 gene is located on the short arm of the third chromosome in the 3p21 region near the von Hippel-Lindau gene (VHL), the mutation in which is the main event in the occurrence of ccRCC. The aim of our investigation is identification of changes in the nucleotide sequence of the PBRM1 tumor suppressor gene in patients with ccRCC. 210 pairs of DNA samples isolated from ccRCC tissue were studied. Analysis of changes in the nucleotide sequence of DNA was carried out by HRM analysis and direct sequencing. In the PBRM1 gene, two somatic mutations were found (c.233G>A (p.D45N) in exon 2, c.1675-1676delTC in exon 15) which were not described previously, and one known polymorphic variant rs17264436 (in exon 23). The frequency of detected mutations was 0.95 % of cases. Analysis of the allelic association for the polymorphic locus rs17264436 showed a statistically significant increase in the risk of developing advanced kidney cancer in carriers of allele rs17264436*A, which can be used in the development of prognostic marker panels. Perhaps the low frequency of mutations in the samples we studied is due to the fact that the inactivation of the PBRM1 gene takes place in other ways, and may also be due to the ethno-specificity of the studied group of patients

A network analysis to identify mediators of germline-driven differences in breast cancer prognosis.

Identifying the underlying genetic drivers of the heritability of breast cancer prognosis remains elusive. We adapt a network-based approach to handle underpowered complex datasets to provide new insights into the potential function of germline variants in breast cancer prognosis. This network-based analysis studies ~7.3 million variants in 84,457 breast cancer patients in relation to breast cancer survival and confirms the results on 12,381 independent patients. Aggregating the prognostic effects of genetic variants across multiple genes, we identify four gene modules associated with survival in estrogen receptor (ER)-negative and one in ER-positive disease. The modules show biological enrichment for cancer-related processes such as G-alpha signaling, circadian clock, angiogenesis, and Rho-GTPases in apoptosis

The FANCM:p.Arg658* truncating variant is associated with risk of triple-negative breast cancer.

Breast cancer is a common disease partially caused by genetic risk factors. Germline pathogenic variants in DNA repair genes BRCA1, BRCA2, PALB2, ATM, and CHEK2 are associated with breast cancer risk. FANCM, which encodes for a DNA translocase, has been proposed as a breast cancer predisposition gene, with greater effects for the ER-negative and triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) subtypes. We tested the three recurrent protein-truncating variants FANCM:p.Arg658*, p.Gln1701*, and p.Arg1931* for association with breast cancer risk in 67,112 cases, 53,766 controls, and 26,662 carriers of pathogenic variants of BRCA1 or BRCA2. These three variants were also studied functionally by measuring survival and chromosome fragility in FANCM -/- patient-derived immortalized fibroblasts treated with diepoxybutane or olaparib. We observed that FANCM:p.Arg658* was associated with increased risk of ER-negative disease and TNBC (OR = 2.44, P = 0.034 and OR = 3.79; P = 0.009, respectively). In a country-restricted analysis, we confirmed the associations detected for FANCM:p.Arg658* and found that also FANCM:p.Arg1931* was associated with ER-negative breast cancer risk (OR = 1.96; P = 0.006). The functional results indicated that all three variants were deleterious affecting cell survival and chromosome stability with FANCM:p.Arg658* causing more severe phenotypes. In conclusion, we confirmed that the two rare FANCM deleterious variants p.Arg658* and p.Arg1931* are risk factors for ER-negative and TNBC subtypes. Overall our data suggest that the effect of truncating variants on breast cancer risk may depend on their position in the gene. Cell sensitivity to olaparib exposure, identifies a possible therapeutic option to treat FANCM-associated tumors

Нейрофиброматоз 1‑го типа: результаты собственного исследования (Республика Башкортостан)

Introduction. Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is the most common hereditary tumor syndrome (frequency of its occurrence in the world is 1 : 3000 of the population). The main clinical manifestations of the disease are multiple café-au-lait macules on the skin and neurofibromas, skeletal abnormalities and cognitive deficits. The disease is based on mutations in the oncosuppressor gene NF1. This disease is characterized by significant clinical polymorphism of manifestations, even among members of the same family. No geno-phenotypic correlations were found for NF1. Therefore, it is assumed that modifier genes are the cause of the varying expressiveness of the disease. Materials and methods. Clinical-epidemiological and molecular-genetic research of patients with NF1 in the Republic of Bashkortostan (RB) was carried out. Sequencing was used to search for intragenic mutations in 57 exons of the NF1 gene. Microsatellite analysis was used to detect the deletion of the entire gene.Results. The frequency of occurrence of NF1 in RB was 1 : 10153 of the population. Analysis of the clinical manifestations of NF1 in RB patients showed a lower incidence of brain cysts in patients born in mixed marriages, which indicates the protective role of mestization. In patients with NF1 who inherited the disease from the mother, a more frequent development of skeletal anomalies and facial dysmorphism was determined. We identified 1 deletion of the entire NF1 gene in 1 patient and 14 intragenic mutations (c.205-1G>C, с.1278G>A, c.1369_1370insGGGTC, с.1570G>A, с.1973_1974delTC, c.2806A>T, с.2991-1G>C, c.3158C>G, с.3526_3528delAGA, с.3826delC, с.4514+5G>A, с.4537С>Т, c.5758_5761delTTGA, с.6792С>A) in 20 patients with NF1. We determined the random distribution of the types of mutations and did not reveal the specific features of the NF1 clinic depending on the type of mutations.Conclusions. The protective role of crossbreeding in relation to brain cysts, as well as the predominance of skeletal anomalies in patients with NF1 inheritance from the mother, indicate the role of modifier genes in the pathogenesis of the disease. The identified mutations in the NF1 gene will allow us to perform prenatal prevention of NF1 in RB patients.Введение. Нейрофиброматоз 1-го типа (НФ1) – самый распространенный наследственный опухолевый синдром (частота встречаемости в мире – 1 : 3000 населения). Основными клиническими проявлениями болезни являются множественные пигментные пятна на коже и нейрофибромы, скелетные аномалии и когнитивный дефицит. В основе болезни лежат мутации в онкосупрессорном гене NF1. Характерен выраженный клинический полиморфизм НФ1 даже среди членов одной семьи, гено-фенотипических корреляций не выявлено. В связи с этим предполагается, что гены-модификаторы влияют на патогенез варьирующей экспрессивности болезни.Материалы и методы. Проведено клинико-эпидемиологическое и молекулярно-генетическое исследование больных НФ1 в Республике Башкортостан (РБ). Поиск внутригенных мутаций осуществлялся методом секвенирования 57 экзонов гена NF1, делеции всего гена – с использованием микросателлитного анализа. Результаты. Частота встречаемости НФ1 в РБ составила 1 : 10153 населения. Анализ клинических проявлений НФ1 у больных из РБ показал меньшую частоту встречаемости кист головного мозга у больных, рожденных в смешанном браке, что свидетельствует о протективной роли метисации. При наследовании НФ1 от матери определено более частое развитие скелетных аномалий и дизморфизма лица. Выявлены 1 делеция всего гена NF1 у 1 пациента и 14 внутригенных мутаций у 20 больных НФ1 (c.205-1G>C, с.1278G>A, c.1369_1370insGGGTC, с.1570G>A, с.1973_1974delTC, c.2806A>T, с.2991-1G>C, c.3158C>G, с.3526_3528delAGA, с.3826delC, с.4514+5G>A, с.4537С>Т, c.5758_5761delTTGA, с.6792С>A). Показано случайное распределение типов мутаций, не выявлено специфических особенностей клиники НФ1 в зависимости от типа мутаций.Выводы. Протективная роль метисации в отношении кист головного мозга, а также преобладание скелетных аномалий при наследовании НФ1 от матери свидетельствуют о роли генов-модификаторов в патогенезе болезни. Идентификация мутаций в гене NF1 позволит проводить пренатальную профилактику НФ1 у населения РБ

Evaluation of European-based polygenic risk score for breast cancer in Ashkenazi Jewish women in Israel

To date, most BC GWASs have been performed Background Polygenic risk score (PRS), calculated in individuals of European (EUR) ancestry, and based on genome-wide association studies (GWASs), the generalisation of EUR-based PRS to other can improve breast cancer (BC) risk assessment. populations is a major challenge. In this study, we examined the performance of EUR-based BC PRS models in Ashkenazi Jewish (AJ) women. Methods We generated PRSs based on data on EUR women from the Breast Cancer Association Consortium (BCAC). We tested the performance of the PRSs in a cohort of 2161 AJ women from Israel (1437 cases and 724 controls) from BCAC (BCAC cohort from Israel (BCAC-IL)). In addition, we tested the performance of these EUR-based BC PRSs, as well as the established 313-SNP EUR BC PRS, in an independent cohort of 181 AJ women from Hadassah Medical Center (HMC) in Israel. Results In the BCAC-IL cohort, the highest OR per 1 SD was 1.56 (±0.09). The OR for AJ women at the top 10% of the PRS distribution compared with the middle quintile was 2.10 (±0.24). In the HMC cohort, the OR per 1 SD of the EUR-based PRS that performed best in the BCAC-IL cohort was 1.58±0.27. The OR per 1 SD of the commonly used 313-SNP BC PRS was 1.64 (±0.28). Conclusions Extant EUR GWAS data can be used for generating PRSs that identify AJ women with markedly elevated risk of BC and therefore hold promise for improving BC risk assessment in AJ women

Reconstruction of major maternal and paternal lineages of the Cape Muslim population

The earliest Cape Muslims were brought to the Cape (Cape Town - South Africa) from Africa and Asia from 1652 to 1834. They were part of an involuntary migration of slaves, political prisoners and convicts, and they contributed to the ethnic diversity of the present Cape Muslim population of South Africa. The history of the Cape Muslims has been well documented and researched however no in-depth genetic studies have been undertaken. The aim of the present study was to determine the respective African, Asian and European contributions to the mtDNA (maternal) and Y-chromosomal (paternal) gene pool of the Cape Muslim population, by analyzing DNA samples of 100 unrelated Muslim males born in the Cape Metropolitan area. A panel of six mtDNA and eight Y-chromosome SNP markers were screened using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphisms (PCR-RFLP). Overall admixture estimates for the maternal line indicated Asian (0.4168) and African mtDNA (0.4005) as the main contributors. The admixture estimates for the paternal line, however, showed a predominance of the Asian contribution (0.7852). The findings are in accordance with historical data on the origins of the early Cape Muslims.Web of Scienc

Germline HOXB13 mutations p.G84E and p.R217C do not confer an increased breast cancer risk

In breast cancer, high levels of homeobox protein Hox-B13 (HOXB13) have been associated with disease progression of ER-positive breast cancer patients and resistance to tamoxifen treatment. Since HOXB13 p.G84E is a prostate cancer risk allele, we evaluated the association between HOXB13 germline mutations and breast cancer risk in a previous study consisting of 3,270 familial non-BRCA1/2 breast cancer cases and 2,327 controls from the Netherlands. Although both recurrent HOXB13 mutations p.G84E and p.R217C were not associated with breast cancer risk, the risk estimation for p.R217C was not very precise. To provide more conclusive evidence regarding the role of HOXB13 in breast cancer susceptibility, we here evaluated the association between HOXB13 mutations and increased breast cancer risk within 81 studies of the international Breast Cancer Association Consortium containing 68,521 invasive breast cancer patients and 54,865 controls. Both HOXB13 p.G84E and p.R217C did not associate with the development of breast cancer in European women, neither in the overall analysis (OR = 1.035, 95% CI = 0.859-1.246, P = 0.718 and OR = 0.798, 95% CI = 0.482-1.322, P = 0.381 respectively), nor in specific high-risk subgroups or breast cancer subtypes. Thus, although involved in breast cancer progression, HOXB13 is not a material breast cancer susceptibility gene