Follicular lymphoma (FL) and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) are the two most common non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHLs). To identify genes with mutations in B-cell NHL we sequenced tumour and matched normal DNA from 13 DLBCL cases and one FL case. We analysed RNA-seq data from these and another 113 NHLs to identify genes with candidate mutations, and then re-sequenced tumour and matched normal DNA from these cases to confirm 109 genes with multiple somatic mutations. Genes with roles in histone modification were frequent targets of somatic mutation. For example, 32% of DLBCL and 89% of FL cases had somatic mutations in MLL2, which encodes a histone methyltransferase. 11.4% of DLBCL and 13.4% of FL cases had somatic mutations in MEF2B, a calcium-regulated gene that cooperates with CREBBP and EP300 in acetylating histones. Our analysis thus suggests a previously unappreciated disruption of chromatin biology in lymphomagenesis.

Oligodendroglioma is characterized by unique clinical, pathological, and genetic features. Recurrent losses of chromosomes 1p and 19q are strongly associated with this brain cancer but knowledge of the identity and function of the genes affected by these alterations is limited. We performed exome sequencing on a discovery set of 16 oligodendrogliomas with 1p/19q co-deletion to identify new molecular features at base-pair resolution. As anticipated, there was a high rate of IDH mutations: all cases had mutations in either IDH1 (14/16) or IDH2 (2/16). In addition, we discovered somatic mutations and insertions/deletions in the CIC gene on chromosome 19q13.2 in 13/16 tumours. These discovery set mutations were validated by deep sequencing of 13 additional tumours, which revealed 7 others with CIC mutations, thus bringing the overall mutation rate in oligodendrogliomas in this study to 20/29 (69%). In contrast, deep sequencing of astrocytomas and oligoastrocytomas without 1p/19q loss revealed that CIC alterations were otherwise rare (1/60; 2%). Of the 21 non-synonymous somatic mutations in 20 CIC-mutant oligodendrogliomas, 9 were in exon 5 within an annotated DNA interacting domain and 3 were in exon 20 within an annotated protein interacting domain. The remaining 9 were found in other exons and frequently included truncations. CIC mutations were highly associated with oligodendroglioma histology, 1p/19q co-deletion and IDH1/2 mutation (p<0.001). Although we observed no differences in the clinical outcomes of CIC mutant versus wild-type tumors, in a background of 1p/19q co-deletion, hemizygous CIC mutations are likely important. We hypothesize that the mutant CIC on the single retained 19q allele is linked to the pathogenesis of oligodendrogliomas with IDH mutation. Our detailed study of genetic aberrations in oligodendroglioma suggests a functional interaction between CIC mutation, IDH1/2 mutation and 1p/19q co-deletion.

Naturally competent bacterial species actively take up environmental DNA and can incorporate it into their chromosomes by homologous recombination. This can bring genetic variation from environmental DNA to recipient chromosomes, often in multiple long “donor” segments. Here, we report the results of genome sequencing 96 colonies of a laboratory Haemophilus influenzae strain, which had been experimentally transformed by DNA from a diverged clinical isolate. Donor segments averaged 6.9 kb (spanning several genes) and were clustered into recombination tracts of ~19.5 kb. Individual colonies had replaced from 0.1 to 3.2% of their chromosomes, and ~1/3 of all donor-specific single-nucleotide variants were present in at least one recombinant. We found that nucleotide divergence did not obviously limit the locations of recombination tracts, although there were small but significant reductions in divergence at recombination breakpoints. Although indels occasionally transformed as parts of longer recombination tracts, they were common at breakpoints, suggesting that indels typically block progression of strand exchange. Some colonies had recombination tracts in which variant positions contained mixtures of both donor and recipient alleles. These tracts were clustered around the origin of replication and were interpreted as the result of heteroduplex segregation in the original transformed cell. Finally, a pilot experiment demonstrated the utility of natural transformation for genetically dissecting natural phenotypic variation. We discuss our results in the context of the potential to merge experimental and population genetic approaches, giving a more holistic understanding of bacterial gene transfer.

CIC encodes a transcriptional repressor, capicua (CIC), whose disrupted activity appears to be involved in several cancer types, including type I low‐grade gliomas (LGGs) and stomach adenocarcinomas (STADs). To explore human CIC's transcriptional network in an isogenic background, we developed novel isogenic CIC knockout cell lines as model systems, and used these in transcriptome analyses to study the consequences of CIC loss. We also compared our results with analyses of transcriptome data from TCGA for type I LGGs and STADs. We identified 39 candidate targets of CIC transcriptional regulation, and confirmed seven of these as direct targets. We showed that, although many CIC targets appear to be context‐specific, the effects of CIC loss converge on the dysregulation of similar biological processes in different cancer types. For example, we found that CIC deficiency was associated with disruptions in the expression of genes involved in cell–cell adhesion, and in the development of several cell and tissue types. We also showed that loss of CIC leads to overexpression of downstream members of the mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK) signalling cascade, indicating that CIC deficiency may present a novel mechanism for activation of this oncogenic pathway. © 2017 The Authors. Journal of Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland.

Background: Iron storage by ferritin enables diatom bloom upon iron input.Results: Ferroxidase center variants show faster iron mineralization and rate of post-oxidation reorganization of iron.Conclusion: Glu-130 and Glu-44 regulate the flux of iron through the ferroxidase center.Significance: Optimization of ferritin for iron oxidation but not mineralization suggests an iron buffering function in addition to long-term iron storage.

The majority of oligodendrogliomas (ODGs) exhibit combined losses of chromosomes 1p and 19q and mutations of isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH1-R132H or IDH2-R172K). Approximately 70% of ODGs with 1p19q co-deletions harbor somatic mutations in the Capicua Transcriptional Repressor (CIC) gene on chromosome 19q13.2. Here we show that endogenous long (CIC-L) and short (CIC-S) CIC proteins are predominantly localized to the nucleus or cytoplasm, respectively. Cytoplasmic CIC-S is found in close proximity to the mitochondria. To study wild type and mutant CIC function and motivated by the paucity of 1p19q co-deleted ODG lines, we created HEK293 and HOG stable cell lines ectopically co-expressing CIC and IDH1. Non-mutant lines displayed increased clonogenicity, but cells co-expressing the mutant IDH1-R132H with either CIC-S-R201W or -R1515H showed reduced clonogenicity in an additive manner, demonstrating cooperative effects in our assays. Expression of mutant CIC-R1515H increased cellular 2-Hydroxyglutarate (2HG) levels compared to wild type CIC in IDH1-R132H background. Levels of phosphorylated ATP-citrate Lyase (ACLY) were lower in cell lines expressing mutant CIC-S proteins compared to cells expressing wild type CIC-S, supporting a cytosolic citrate metabolism-related mechanism of reduced clonogenicity in our in vitro model systems. ACLY or phospho-ACLY were similarly reduced in CIC-mutant 1p19q co-deleted oligodendroglioma patient samples.

Pediatric brain tumors are a leading cause of cancer-related death in children. In recent years, the application of next-generation sequencing and other high-throughput technologies to analysis of pediatric brain tumors has generated an abundance of molecular information. This has provided an unprecedented understanding of their biology and is refining tumor classification into clinically relevant subgroups. In this review, we provide an overview of our evolving molecular knowledge of the commonest pediatric brain tumors, pilocytic astrocytomas, ependymomas, medulloblastomas, and pediatric glioblastomas, as well as the biological and potential clinical implications of this new knowledge. Studies aimed at investigating intratumoral heterogeneity are also discussed.

CIC is a tissue-specific transcriptional repressor that is highly conserved between metazoan organisms and is required for the normal development of multiple adult structures. CIC functions to transduce receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) signalling into gene expression changes through a mechanism termed default repression, wherein CIC is bound to target gene promoters or enhancers and inhibits transcription in the absence of signal. This CIC-DNA interaction can be inhibited through activation of the RTK core signalling molecule mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), which then allows for the transcription of CIC targets through this RTK-MAPK signalling axis. Components of RTK signalling are commonly dysregulated in cancers, possibly implying that CIC alterations observed in specific cancer types (e.g. oligodendroglioma and Ewing-like sarcomas) are a form of RTK signalling dysregulation that drives oncogenesis. CIC is also specifically expressed in cells of the developing central nervous system and its dysfunction is associated with the neurodegenerative disorder spinocerebellar ataxia type 1, implicating CIC in neuronal cell development and/or homeostasis. Other possible cellular and physiological roles for CIC include cell cycle control, ATP-citrate lyase phosphorylation, reactive oxygen species homeostasis, and bile acid homeostasis.