Circular extrachromosomal DNA promotes tumor heterogeneity in high-risk medulloblastoma
- PMID: 37945900
- PMCID: PMC10703696
- DOI: 10.1038/s41588-023-01551-3
Circular extrachromosomal DNA promotes tumor heterogeneity in high-risk medulloblastoma
Abstract
Circular extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) in patient tumors is an important driver of oncogenic gene expression, evolution of drug resistance and poor patient outcomes. Applying computational methods for the detection and reconstruction of ecDNA across a retrospective cohort of 481 medulloblastoma tumors from 465 patients, we identify circular ecDNA in 82 patients (18%). Patients with ecDNA-positive medulloblastoma were more than twice as likely to relapse and three times as likely to die within 5 years of diagnosis. A subset of tumors harbored multiple ecDNA lineages, each containing distinct amplified oncogenes. Multimodal sequencing, imaging and CRISPR inhibition experiments in medulloblastoma models reveal intratumoral heterogeneity of ecDNA copy number per cell and frequent putative 'enhancer rewiring' events on ecDNA. This study reveals the frequency and diversity of ecDNA in medulloblastoma, stratified into molecular subgroups, and suggests copy number heterogeneity and enhancer rewiring as oncogenic features of ecDNA.
© 2023. The Author(s).
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare the following competing interests: H.Y.C. is a co-founder of Accent Therapeutics, Boundless Bio, Cartography Biosciences, Orbital Therapeutics and is an advisor of 10x Genomics, Arsenal Biosciences, Chroma Medicine and Spring Discovery. P.S.M. is a co-founder, chairs the scientific advisory board (SAB) and has equity interest in Boundless Bio. P.S.M. is also an advisor with equity for Asteroid Therapeutics and is an advisor to Sage Therapeutics. V.B. is a co-founder, consultant, SAB member and has equity interest in Boundless Bio and Abterra. The terms of this arrangement have been reviewed and approved by the University of California, San Diego in accordance with its conflict of interest policies. J.L. is a part-time consultant for Boundless Bio. The terms of this arrangement have been reviewed and approved by the University of California, San Diego in accordance with its conflict of interest policies. J.T.L. is an employee of Boundless Bio. His employment began after his contributions to the manuscript. The remaining authors declare no competing interests.
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Comment in
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Defining the Role of Extrachromosomal DNA Amplifications in Medulloblastoma.Cancer Res. 2024 Feb 15;84(4):515-516. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-23-4025. Cancer Res. 2024. PMID: 38175761
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