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Reyna Favis

Publications and source records attributed to Reyna Favis.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

Applications of the universal DNA microarray in molecular medicine.

Integration of molecular medicine into standard clinical practice will require the availability of diagnostics that are sensitive, rapid, and robust. The backbone technology underlying the diagnostic will likely serve double duty during clinical trials in order to first validate the biomarkers that contribute to both drug response and disease stratification. PCR/LDR/Universal DNA microarray is a promising technology to help drive the transition from the current paradigms of clinical decision making to the new era of personalized medicine. By uncoupling the mutation detection step from array hybridization, this technology becomes fully programmable. It exploits full use of the sensitivity that the ligase detection reaction can provide, while maintaining a rapid read out on a universal microarray. Thus, PCR/LDR/Universal DNA microarray is 50-fold more sensitive and 10-fold more rapid than conventional hybridization-only arrays. The intent of this article is to provide investigators with a perspective on current uses of this approach, as well as to serve as a practical guide to implementation.

Humans↗

Rapid and sensitive p53 alteration analysis in biopsies from lung cancer patients using a functional assay and a universal oligonucleotide array: a prospective study.

PURPOSE: Molecular profiling of alterations associated with lung cancer holds the promise to define clinical parameters such as response to treatment or survival. Because <5% of small cell lung cancers and <30% of non-small cell lung cancers are surgically resectable, molecular analysis will perforce rely on routinely available clinical samples such as biopsies. Identifying tumor mutations in such samples will require a sensitive and robust technology to overcome signal from excess amounts of normal DNA. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: p53 mutation status was assessed from the DNA and RNA of biopsies collected prospectively from 83 patients with lung cancer. Biopsies were obtained either by conventional bronchoscopy or computed tomography-guided percutaneous biopsy. Matched surgical specimens were available for 22 patients. Three assays were used: direct sequencing; a functional assay in yeast; and a newly developed PCR/ligase detection reaction/Universal DNA array assay. RESULTS: Using the functional assay, p53 mutation was found in 62% of biopsies and 64% of surgical specimens with a concordance of 80%. The sensitivity of the functional assay was determined to be 5%. Direct sequencing confirmed mutations in 92% of surgical specimens but in only 78% of biopsies. The DNA array confirmed 100% of mutations in both biopsies and surgical specimens. Using this newly developed DNA array, we demonstrate the feasibility of directly identifying p53 mutations in clinical samples containing <5% of tumor cells. CONCLUSIONS: The versatility and sensitivity of this new array assay should allow additional development of mutation profiling arrays that could be applied to biological samples with a low tumor cell content such as bronchial aspirates, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, or serum.

Aged↗

Harmonized microarray/mutation scanning analysis of TP53 mutations in undissected colorectal tumors.

Both the mutational status and the specific mutation of TP53 (p53) have been shown to impact both tumor prognosis and response to therapies. Molecular profiling of solid tumors is confounded by infiltrating wild-type cells, since normal DNA can interfere with detection of mutant sequences. Our objective was to identify TP53 mutations in 138 stage I-IV colorectal adenocarcinomas and liver metastases without first enriching for tumor cells by microdissection. To achieve this, we developed a harmonized protocol involving multiplex polymerase chain reaction/ligase detection reaction (PCR/LDR) with Universal DNA microarray analysis and endonuclease V/ligase mutation scanning. Sequences were verified using dideoxy sequencing. The harmonized protocol detected all 66 mutations. Dideoxy sequencing detected 41 out of 66 mutations (62%) using automated reading, and 59 out of 66 mutations (89%) with manual reading. Data analysis comparing colon cancer entries in the TP53 database (http://p53.curie.fr) with the results reported in this study showed that distribution of mutations and the mutational events were comparable.

Adenocarcinoma↗

The presence of p53 mutations in human osteosarcomas correlates with high levels of genomic instability.

The p53 gene is a critical tumor suppressor that is inactivated in a majority of cancers. The central role of p53 in response to stresses such as DNA damage, hypoxia, and oncogene activation underlies this high frequency of negative selection during tumorigenic transformation. Mutations in p53 disrupt checkpoint responses to DNA damage and result in the potential for destabilization of the genome. Consistent with this, p53 mutant cells have been shown to accumulate genomic alterations in cell culture, mouse models, and some human tumors. The relationship between p53 mutation and genomic instability in human osteosarcoma is addressed in this report. Similar to some other primary human tumors, the mutation of p53 correlates significantly with the presence of high levels of genomic instability in osteosarcomas. Surprisingly, osteosarcomas harboring an amplification of the HDM2 oncogene, which inhibits the tumor-suppressive properties of p53, do not display high levels of genomic instability. These results demonstrate that the inactivation of p53 in osteosarcomas directly by mutation versus indirectly by HDM2 amplification may have different cellular consequences with respect to the stability of the genome.

DNA, Neoplasm↗

Single nucleotide polymorphism seeking long term association with complex disease.

Successful investigation of common diseases requires advances in our understanding of the organization of the genome. Linkage disequilibrium provides a theoretical basis for performing candidate gene or whole-genome association studies to analyze complex disease. However, to constructively interrogate SNPs for these studies, technologies with sufficient throughput and sensitivity are required. A plethora of suitable and reliable methods have been developed, each of which has its own unique advantage. The characteristics of the most promising genotyping and polymorphism scanning technologies are presented. These technologies are examined both in the context of complex disease investigation and in their capacity to face the unique physical and molecular challenges (allele amplification, loss of heterozygosity and stromal contamination) of solid tumor research.

Biotechnology↗

An endonuclease/ligase based mutation scanning method especially suited for analysis of neoplastic tissue.

Knowledge of inherited and sporadic mutations in known and candidate cancer genes may influence clinical decisions. We have developed a mutation scanning method that combines thermostable EndonucleaseV (Endo V) and DNA ligase. Variant and wild-type PCR amplicons are generated using fluorescently labeled primers, and heteroduplexed. Thermotoga maritima (Tma) EndoV recognizes and primarily cleaves heteroduplex DNA one base 3' to the mismatch, as well as nicking matched DNA at low levels. Thermus species (Tsp.) AK16D DNA ligase reseals the background nicks to create a highly sensitive and specific assay. The fragment mobility on a DNA sequencing gel reveals the approximate position of the mutation. This method identified 31/35 and 8/8 unique point mutations and insertions/deletions, respectively, in the p53, VHL, K-ras, APC, BRCA1, and BRCA2 genes. The method has the sensitivity to detect K-ras mutations diluted 1 : 20 with wild-type DNA, a p53 mutation in a 1.7 kb amplicon, and unknown p53 mutations in pooled DNA samples. EndoV/Ligase mutation scanning combined with PCR/LDR/Universal array proved superior to automated DNA sequencing for detecting p53 mutations in colon tumors. This technique is well suited for scanning low-frequency mutations in pooled samples and for analysing tumor DNA containing a minority of the unknown mutation.

Adenocarcinoma↗