Mutation analysis of the ATR gene in breast and ovarian cancer families

INTRODUCTION: Mutations in BRCA1, BRCA2, ATM, TP53, CHK2 and PTEN account for only 20–30% of the familial aggregation of breast cancer, which suggests the involvement of additional susceptibility genes. The ATR (ataxia-telangiectasia- and Rad3-related) kinase is essential for the maintenance of genomic integrity. It functions both in parallel and cooperatively with ATM, but whereas ATM is primarily activated by DNA double-strand breaks induced by ionizing radiation, ATR has been shown to respond to a much broader range of DNA damage. Upon activation, ATR phosphorylates several important tumor suppressors, including p53, BRCA1 and CHK1. Based on its central function in the DNA damage response, ATR is a plausible candidate gene for susceptibility to cancer. METHODS: We screened the entire coding region of the ATR gene for mutations in affected index cases from 126 Finnish families with breast and/or ovarian cancer, 75 of which were classified as high-risk and 51 as moderate-risk families, by using conformation sensitive gel electrophoresis and direct sequencing. RESULTS: A large number of novel sequence variants were identified, four of which – Glu254Gly, Ser1142Gly, IVS24-48G>A and IVS26+15C>T – were absent from the tested control individuals (n = 300). However, the segregation of these mutations with the cancer phenotype could not be confirmed, partly because of the lack of suitable DNA samples. CONCLUSION: The present study does not support a major role for ATR mutations in hereditary susceptibility to breast and ovarian cancer

BRCA1 mislocalization leads to aberrant DNA damage response in heterozygous ABRAXAS1 mutation carrier cells

Peer reviewe

Case-control analysis of truncating mutations in DNA damage response genes connects TEX15 and FANCD2 with hereditary breast cancer susceptibility

Several known breast cancer susceptibility genes encode proteins involved in DNA damage response (DDR) and are characterized by rare loss-of-function mutations. However, these explain less than half of the familial cases. To identify novel susceptibility factors, 39 rare truncating mutations, identified in 189 Northern Finnish hereditary breast cancer patients in parallel sequencing of 796 DDR genes, were studied for disease association. Mutation screening was performed for Northern Finnish breast cancer cases (n = 578-1565) and controls (n = 337-1228). Mutations showing potential cancer association were analyzed in additional Finnish cohorts.c.7253dupT in TEX15, encoding a DDR factor important in meiosis, associated with hereditary breast cancer (p = 0.018) and likely represents a Northern Finnish founder mutation. A deleterious c.2715 + 1G > A mutation in the Fanconi anemia gene, FANCD2, was over two times more common in the combined Finnish hereditary cohort compared to controls. A deletion (c.640_644del5) in RNF168, causative for recessive RIDDLE syndrome, had high prevalence in majority of the analyzed cohorts, but did not associate with breast cancer. In conclusion, truncating variants in TEX15 and FANCD2 are potential breast cancer risk factors, warranting further investigations in other populations. Furthermore, high frequency of RNF168 c.640_644del5 indicates the need for its testing in Finnish patients with RIDDLE syndrome symptoms.Peer reviewe

Case-control analysis of truncating mutations in DNA damage response genes connects TEX15 and FANCD2 with hereditary breast cancer susceptibility

Several known breast cancer susceptibility genes encode proteins involved in DNA damage response (DDR) and are characterized by rare loss-of-function mutations. However, these explain less than half of the familial cases. To identify novel susceptibility factors, 39 rare truncating mutations, identified in 189 Northern Finnish hereditary breast cancer patients in parallel sequencing of 796 DDR genes, were studied for disease association. Mutation screening was performed for Northern Finnish breast cancer cases (n = 578–1565) and controls (n = 337–1228). Mutations showing potential cancer association were analyzed in additional Finnish cohorts. c.7253dupT in TEX15, encoding a DDR factor important in meiosis, associated with hereditary breast cancer (p = 0.018) and likely represents a Northern Finnish founder mutation. A deleterious c.2715 + 1G > A mutation in the Fanconi anemia gene, FANCD2, was over two times more common in the combined Finnish hereditary cohort compared to controls. A deletion (c.640_644del5) in RNF168, causative for recessive RIDDLE syndrome, had high prevalence in majority of the analyzed cohorts, but did not associate with breast cancer. In conclusion, truncating variants in TEX15 and FANCD2 are potential breast cancer risk factors, warranting further investigations in other populations. Furthermore, high frequency of RNF168 c.640_644del5 indicates the need for its testing in Finnish patients with RIDDLE syndrome symptoms.</p

Hereditary predisposition to breast cancer—evaluation of candidate genes

Abstract In Western countries, breast and ovarian cancer are among the most frequent malignancies affecting women. Approximately 5–10% of the cases in the general population have been suggested to be attributed to inherited disease susceptibility. BRCA1 and BRCA2 are the main genes associated with predisposition to breast and ovarian cancer. Mutations in these two genes explain a major part of the families displaying a large number of early-onset breast and/or ovarian cancers, but at least one third of the cases appear to be influenced by other, as yet unidentified genes. Therefore, it is likely that defects in other cancer predisposing genes, perhaps associated with lower disease penetrance and action in a polygenic context, will also be discovered. In the present study, the contribution of germline mutations in putative breast and/or ovarian cancer susceptibility genes, based on their biological function, has been investigated in Finnish breast cancer families. The role of large genomic deletions or other rearrangements in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes was evaluated by Southern blot analysis, and mutation analysis of TP53, RAD51, the BRC repeats of BRCA2, and 53BP1 was performed by conformation sensitive gel electrophoresis and DNA sequencing. Germline TP53 mutations were searched for in 108 Finnish breast cancer families without BRCA1 or BRCA2 alterations. In this study, the pathogenic TP53 germline mutation, Arg248Gln, was identified in only one family. This family showed a strong family history of breast cancer and other cancers also fulfilling the criteria for Li-Fraumeni-like syndrome. Germline TP53 mutations are expected to be found in cancer families with clinical features seen in Li-Fraumeni or Li-Fraumeni-like syndromes. In this study, large deletions in BRCA1 and BRCA2 were not observed in 82 breast and/or ovarian cancer families. Likewise, no disease-related aberrations were detected in RAD51, the BRC repeats of BRCA2 or 53BP1 in the 126 breast and/or ovarian cancer families studied. The obtained results were validated by comparing to the occurrence in 288–300 female cancer-free control individuals. These results do not support the hypothesis that alterations in these particular genomic regions play a significant role in breast cancer predisposition in Finland. Thus, there are still genes to be discovered to explain the molecular background of breast cancer

Targeted Next-Generation Sequencing Identifies a Recurrent Mutation in <i>MCPH1</i> Associating with Hereditary Breast Cancer Susceptibility

<div><p>Breast cancer is strongly influenced by hereditary risk factors, a majority of which still remain unknown. Here, we performed a targeted next-generation sequencing of 796 genes implicated in DNA repair in 189 Finnish breast cancer cases with indication of hereditary disease susceptibility and focused the analysis on protein truncating mutations. A recurrent heterozygous mutation (c.904_916del, p.Arg304ValfsTer3) was identified in early DNA damage response gene, <i>MCPH1</i>, significantly associating with breast cancer susceptibility both in familial (5/145, 3.4%, <i>P</i> = 0.003, OR 8.3) and unselected cases (16/1150, 1.4%, <i>P</i> = 0.016, OR 3.3). A total of 21 mutation positive families were identified, of which one-third exhibited also brain tumors and/or sarcomas (<i>P</i> = 0.0007). Mutation carriers exhibited significant increase in genomic instability assessed by cytogenetic analysis for spontaneous chromosomal rearrangements in peripheral blood lymphocytes (<i>P</i> = 0.0007), suggesting an effect for MCPH1 haploinsufficiency on cancer susceptibility. Furthermore, 40% of the mutation carrier tumors exhibited loss of the wild-type allele. These findings collectively provide strong evidence for <i>MCHP1</i> being a novel breast cancer susceptibility gene, which warrants further investigations in other populations.</p></div

Family history of cancers of <i>MCPH1</i> c.904_916del positive index cases^a.

<p>Family history of cancers of <i>MCPH1</i> c.904_916del positive index cases<a href="http://www.plosgenetics.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pgen.1005816#t002fn004" target="_blank">^a</a>.</p

Examples of <i>MCPH1</i> mutation positive families (A-C).

<p>Patients with breast cancer are marked with black half circles. Other cancer types are marked with grey squares. The age at diagnosis, when known, is marked below the cancer type. Individuals genotyped for <i>MCPH1</i> c.904_916del are marked with either a plus (mutation positive) or a minus sign (mutation negative). A slashed pedigree symbol indicates a deceased individual. Triangle indicates the initially studied index patient (BR-0653, BR-0887 and BR-0154, respectively). Abbreviations: Bas: basalioma, Bt: brain tumor, Br: breast cancer, Col: colon cancer, Csu: cancer site unknown, Lar: laryngeal cancer, Ov: ovarian tumor, Pro: prostate cancer, Ut: uterine cancer, Vul: vulvar cancer.</p

Effect of <i>MCPH1</i> c.904_916del mutation at the mRNA and protein level.

<p>(<b>A</b>) Schematic presentation of the MCPH1 protein and the position of the observed truncating mutation. (<b>B</b>) Sequence chromatogram comparisons of genomic DNA and cDNA of heterozygous mutation carriers and a wild-type control. (<b>C</b>) Immunoblotting of 3 mutation carriers and 3 non-carriers with an antibody directed towards the amino-terminus of MCPH1. The representative image of altogether three independent experiments is shown.</p