Lynch Syndrome Genetics and Clinical Implications

Päivi Peltomäki, Minna Nyström, Jukka-Pekka Mecklin, Toni T Seppälä.

Lynch syndrome (LS) is one of the most prevalent hereditary cancer syndromes in humans and accounts for some 3% of unselected patients with colorectal or endometrial cancer and 10%-15% of those with DNA mismatch repair-deficient tumors. Previous studies have established the genetic basis of LS predisposition, but there have been significant advances recently in the understanding of the molecular pathogenesis of LS tumors, which has important implications in clinical management. At the same time, immunotherapy has revolutionized the treatment of advanced cancers with DNA mismatch repair defects. We aim to review the recent progress in the LS field and discuss how the accumulating epidemiologic, clinical, and molecular information has contributed to a more accurate and complete picture of LS, resulting in genotype- and immunologic subtype-specific strategies for surveillance, cancer prevention, and treatment.

PMID: 36706841

 

Identification of DHX40 as a candidate susceptibility gene for colorectal and hematological neoplasia

Alisa Olkinuora, Taina T Nieminen, Suvi Douglas, Anni Kauppinen, Mika Kontro, Juho Väänänen, Matti Kankainen, Ari Ristimäki, Markus Mäkinen, Päivi Lahermo, Caroline Heckman, Janna Saarela, Milla Salonen, Anna Lepistö, Heikki Järvinen, Jukka-Pekka Mecklin, Outi Kilpivaara, Ulla Wartiovaara-Kautto, Kimmo Porkka, Päivi Peltomäki.

Causative genes are mostly unknown for FCCTX, the mismatch repair-proficient category of familial colorectal cancers. Recent evidence suggests shared susceptibility factors between colorectal and hematological malignancies. We investigated 28 FCCTX families by exome sequencing, supplemented with genome sequencing, RNA-sequencing, and tumor studies to identify the predisposing genes. Guided by the findings, the exomes of ~400 patients with acute leukemia, myelodysplastic syndrome, and myeloma were examined. A family with hematological malignancies and cancers of the intestine and breast revealed a truncating variant in the DEAH-box RNA helicase gene DHX40 co-segregating with disease in seven family members. Neoplastic tissues revealed no apparent “second hit”, implying a haploinsufficiency model of tumorigenesis. DHX40 siRNA-treated cell lines exhibited a 13% increase in aberrantly spliced transcripts vs. GAPDH-siRNA or non-target siRNA-treated cells. In the hospital-based hematological series, 18% of germline and 28% of somatic exomes revealed possibly pathogenic DEAD/H box gene variants, including somatic variants of DHX40 in four. This study emphasizes aberrant RNA metabolism behind FCCTX and hematological neoplasia. Our observations on DHX40 suggest analogy to DDX41, a DEAD-box RNA helicase gene previously linked to myeloid malignancies.

PMID: 37696923

Mono- and biallelic germline variants of DNA glycosylase genes in colon adenomatous polyposis families from two continents

Alisa Olkinuora, Andrea Constanza Mayordomo, Anni Katariina Kauppinen, María Belén Cerliani, Mariana Coraglio, Ávila Karina Collia, Alejandro Gutiérrez, Karin Alvarez, Alessandra Cassana, Francisco Lopéz-Köstner, Federico Jauk, Hernán García-Rivello, Ari Ristimäki, Laura Koskenvuo, Anna Lepistö, Taina Tuulikki Nieminen, Carlos Alberto Vaccaro, Walter Hernán Pavicic, Päivi Peltomäki

Recently, biallelic germline variants of the DNA glycosylase genes MUTYH and NTHL1 were linked to polyposis susceptibility. Significant fractions remain without a molecular explanation, warranting searches for underlying causes. We used exome sequencing to investigate clinically well-defined adenomatous polyposis cases and families from Finland (N=34), Chile (N=21), and Argentina (N=12), all with known susceptibility genes excluded. Nine index cases (13%) revealed germline variants with proven or possible pathogenicity in the DNA glycosylase genes, involving NEIL1 (mono- or biallelic) in 3 cases, MUTYH (monoallelic) in 3 cases, NTHL1 (biallelic) in 1 case, and OGG1 (monoallelic) in 2 cases. NTHL1 was affected with the well-established, pathogenic c.268C>T, p.(Gln90Ter) variant. A recurrent heterozygous NEIL1 c.506G>A, p.(Gly169Asp) variant was observed in two families. In a Finnish family, the variant occurred in trans with a truncating NEIL1 variant (c.821delT). In an Argentine family, the variant co-occurred with a genomic deletion of exons 2 – 11 of PMS2. Mutational signatures in tumor tissues complied with biological functions reported for NEIL1. Our results suggest that germline variants in DNA glycosylase genes may occur in a non-negligible proportion of unexplained colon polyposis cases and may predispose to tumor development.

Front Oncol. 28;12:870863.

PMID: 36387175

Immunoprofiles and DNA Methylation of Inflammatory Marker Genes in Ulcerative Colitis-Associated Colorectal Tumorigenesis

Mäki-Nevala S, Ukwattage S, Wirta E-V, Ahtiainen M, Ristimäki A, Seppälä TT , Lepistö A, Mecklin J-P, Peltomäki P.

Immunological and epigenetic changes are interconnected and contribute to tumorigenesis. We determined the immunoprofiles and promoter methylation of inflammation-related genes for colitis-associated colorectal carcinomas (CA-CRC). The results were compared with Lynch syndrome (LS)-associated colorectal tumors, which are characterized by an active immune environment through inherited mismatch repair defects. CA-CRCs (= 31) were immunohistochemically evaluated for immune cell scores (ICSs) and PDCD1 and CD274 expression. Seven inflammation-associated genes (CD274NTSR1PPARGPTGS2PYCARDSOCS1, and SOCS2), the repair gene MGMT, and eight standard marker genes for the CpG Island Methylator Phenotype (CIMP) were investigated for promoter methylation in CA-CRCs, LS tumors (n = 29), and paired normal mucosae by multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification. All but one CA-CRCs were microsatellite-stable and all LS tumors were microsatellite-unstable. Most CA-CRCs had a high ICS (55%) and a positive CD274 expression in immune cells (52%). NTSR1 revealed frequent tumor-specific hypermethylation in CA-CRC and LS. When compared to LS mucosae, normal mucosae from patients with CA-CRC showed significantly higher methylation of NTSR1 and most CIMP markers. In conclusion, CA-CRCs share a frequent ICShigh/CD274pos expression pattern with LS tumors. Elevated methylation in normal mucosa may indicate field cancerization as a feature of CA-CRC-associated tumorigenesis.

Biomolecules 2021, 11(10):1440.

PMID: 34680073

From APC to the genetics of hereditary and familial colon cancer syndromes

Olkinuora A, Peltomäki P, Aaltonen L, Rajamäki K.

Hereditary colorectal cancer syndromes attributable to high penetrance mutations represent 9-26% of young-onset colorectal cancer cases. The clinical significance of many of these mutations is understood well enough to be used in diagnostics and as an aid in patient care. However, despite the advances made in the field, a significant proportion of familial and early-onset cases remains molecularly uncharacterized and extensive work is still needed to fully understand the genetic nature of colorectal cancer susceptibility. With the emergence of next generation sequencing and associated methods, several predisposition loci have been unravelled but validation is incomplete. Individuals with cancer predisposing mutations are currently enrolled in life-long surveillance, but with the development of new treatments, such as cancer vaccinations, this might change in the not so distant future for at least some individuals. For individuals without a known cause for their disease susceptibility, prevention and therapy options are less precise. Herein, we review the progress achieved in the last three decades with a focus on how colorectal cancer predisposition genes were discovered. Furthermore, we discuss the clinical implications of these discoveries and anticipate what to expect in the next decade.

Hum Mol Genet. 2021 Jul 30; ddab208.

PMID: 34329396

Somatic mutation profiles as molecular classifiers of ulcerative colitis-associated colorectal cancer

Mäki-Nevala S, Ukwattage S, Olkinuora A, Almusa H, Ahtiainen M, Ristimäki A, Seppälä T, Lepistö A, Mecklin JP, Peltomäki P

Ulcerative colitis increases colorectal cancer risk by mechanisms that remain incompletely understood. We approached this question by determining the genetic and epigenetic profiles of colitis-associated colorectal carcinomas (CA-CRC). The findings were compared to Lynch syndrome (LS), a different form of cancer predisposition that shares the importance of immunological factors in tumorigenesis. CA-CRCs (n = 27) were investigated for microsatellite instability, CpG island methylator phenotype and somatic mutations of 999 cancer-relevant genes (“Pan-cancer” panel). A subpanel of “Pan-cancer” design (578 genes) was used for LS colorectal tumors (n = 28). Mutational loads and signatures stratified CA-CRCs into three subgroups: hypermutated microsatellite-unstable (Group 1, n = 1), hypermutated microsatellite-stable (Group 2, n = 9) and nonhypermutated microsatellite-stable (Group 3, n = 17). The Group 1 tumor was the only one with MLH1 promoter hypermethylation and exhibited the mismatch repair deficiency-associated Signatures 21 and 15. Signatures 30 and 32 characterized Group 2, whereas no prominent single signature existed in Group 3. TP53, the most common mutational target in CA-CRC (16/27, 59%), was similarly affected in Groups 2 and 3, but DNA repair genes and Wnt signaling genes were mutated significantly more often in Group 2. In LS tumors, the degree of hypermutability exceeded that of the hypermutated CA-CRC Groups 1 and 2, and somatic mutational profiles and signatures were different. In conclusion, Groups 1 (4%) and 3 (63%) comply with published studies, whereas Group 2 (33%) is novel. The existence of molecularly distinct subgroups within CA-CRC may guide clinical management, such as therapy options.

Keywords: Lynch syndrome; Ulcerative colitis; colorectal cancer; microsatellite instability; somatic mutation.

Int J Cancer. 2021, Jun 15;148(12):2997-3007.

PMID: 33521965

Updates in the field of hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer

Peltomäki P, Olkinuora A, Nieminen TT

Introduction: Up to one third of colorectal cancers show familial clustering and 5% are hereditary single-gene disorders. Hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer comprises DNA mismatch repair-deficient and -proficient subsets, represented by Lynch syndrome (LS) and familial colorectal cancer type X (FCCTX), respectively. Accurate knowledge of molecular etiology and genotype-phenotype correlations are critical for tailored cancer prevention and treatment.

Areas covered: The authors highlight advances in the molecular dissection of hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer, based on recent literature retrieved from PubMed. Future possibilities for novel gene discoveries are discussed.

Expert commentary: LS is molecularly well established, but new information is accumulating of the associated clinical and tumor phenotypes. FCCTX remains poorly defined, but several promising candidate genes have been discovered and share some preferential biological pathways. Multi-level characterization of specimens from large patient cohorts representing multiple populations, combined with proper bioinformatic and functional analyses, will be necessary to resolve the outstanding questions.

Keywords: DNA mismatch repair; Hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer; constitutional epimutation; familial colorectal cancer type X; genomic instability; germline mutation; lynch syndrome.

Expert Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2020 Aug 5;1-14.

PMID: 32755332

Molecular Basis of Mismatch Repair Protein Deficiency in Tumors from Lynch Suspected Cases with Negative Germline Test Results

Olkinuora A, Gylling A, Almusa H, Eldfors S, Lepistö A, Mecklin J P, Nieminen T T., & Peltomäki P.

Some 10-50% of Lynch-suspected cases with abnormal immunohistochemical (IHC) staining remain without any identifiable germline mutation of DNA mismatch repair (MMR) genes. MMR proteins form heterodimeric complexes, giving rise to distinct IHC patterns when mutant. Potential reasons for not finding a germline mutation include involvement of an MMR gene not predicted by the IHC pattern, epigenetic mechanism of predisposition, primary mutation in another DNA repair or replication-associated gene, and double somatic MMR gene mutations. We addressed these possibilities by germline and tumor studies in 60 Lynch-suspected cases ascertained through diagnostics (n = 55) or research (n = 5). All cases had abnormal MMR protein staining in tumors but no point mutation or large rearrangement of the suspected MMR genes in the germline. In diagnostic practice, MSH2/MSH6 (MutS Homolog 2/MutS Homolog 6) deficiency prompts MSH2 mutation screening; in our study, 3/11 index individuals (27%) with this IHC pattern revealed pathogenic germline mutations in MSH6. Individuals with isolated absence of MSH6 are routinely screened for MSH6 mutations alone; we found a predisposing mutation in MSH2 in 1/7 such cases (14%). Somatic deletion of the MSH2-MSH6 region, joint loss of MSH6 and MSH3 (MutS Homolog 3) proteins, and hindered MSH2/MSH6 dimerization offered explanations to misleading IHC patterns. Constitutional epimutation hypothesis was pursued in the MSH2 and/or MSH6-deficient cases plus 38 cases with MLH1 (MutL Homolog 1)-deficient tumors; a primary MLH1 epimutation was identified in one case with an MLH1-deficient tumor. We conclude that both MSH2 and MSH6 should be screened in MSH2/6- and MSH6-deficient cases. In MLH1-deficient cases, constitutional epimutations of MLH1 warrant consideration.

Keywords: DNA mismatch repair; Lynch syndrome; colorectal cancer; deep sequencing.

Cancers (Basel) 2020 Jul 9;12(7):E1853.

PMID: 32660107

Does breast carcinoma belong to the Lynch syndrome tumor spectrum? – Somatic mutational profiles vs. ovarian and colorectal carcinomas.

Porkka NK, Olkinuora A, Kuopio T, Ahtiainen M, Eldfors S, Almusa H, Mecklin JP, Peltomäki P.

Abstract

Inherited DNA mismatch repair (MMR) defects cause predisposition to colorectal, endometrial, ovarian, and other cancers occurring in Lynch syndrome (LS). It is unsettled whether breast carcinoma belongs to the LS tumor spectrum. We approached this question through somatic mutational analysis of breast carcinomas from LS families, using established LS-spectrum tumors for comparison. Somatic mutational profiles of 578 cancer-relevant genes were determined for LS-breast cancer (LS-BC, n = 20), non-carrier breast cancer (NC-BC, n = 10), LS-ovarian cancer (LS-OC, n = 16), and LS-colorectal cancer (LS-CRC, n = 18) from the National LS Registry of Finland. Microsatellite and MMR protein analysis stratified LS-BCs into MMR-deficient (dMMR, n = 11) and MMR-proficient (pMMR, n = 9) subgroups. All NC-BCs were pMMR and all LS-OCs and LS-CRCs dMMR. All but one dMMR LS-BCs were hypermutated (> 10 non-synonymous mutations/Mb; average 174/Mb per tumor) and the frequency of MMR-deficiency-associated signatures 6, 20, and 26 was comparable to that in LS-OC and LS-CRC. LS-BCs that were pMMR resembled NC-BCs with respect to somatic mutational loads (4/9, 44%, hypermutated with average mutation count 33/Mb vs. 3/10, 30%, hypermutated with average 88 mutations/Mb), whereas mutational signatures shared features of dMMR LS-BC, LS-OC, and LS-CRC. Epigenetic regulatory genes were significantly enriched as mutational targets in LS-BC, LS-OC, and LS-CRC. Many top mutant genes of our LS-BCs have previously been identified as drivers of unselected breast carcinomas. In conclusion, somatic mutational signatures suggest that conventional MMR status of tumor tissues is likely to underestimate the significance of the predisposing MMR defects as contributors to breast tumorigenesis in LS.

KEYWORDS:

DNA mismatch repair; Lynch syndrome; MSI; breast carcinoma; somatic mutation

Oncotarget. 2020 Apr 7;11(14):1244-1256.

PubMed ID: 32292574

Biallelic germline nonsense variant of MLH3 underlies polyposis predisposition.

Olkinuora A, Nieminen TT, Mårtensson E, Rohlin A, Ristimäki A, Koskenvuo L, Lepistö A, Swedish Extended Genetic Analysis of Colorectal Neoplasia (SWEN) Study Group, Gebre-Medhin S, Nordling M, Peltomäki P.

PURPOSE: Some 10% of familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) and 80% of attenuated polyposis (AFAP) cases remain molecularly unexplained. We scrutinized such cases by exome-wide and targeted methods to search for novel susceptibility genes.

METHODS: Exome sequencing was conducted on 40 unexplained (mainly sporadic) cases with FAP or AFAP from Finland. The DNA mismatch repair (MMR) gene MLH3 (MutL Homolog 3) was pinpointed and prompted a subsequent screen of ~1000 Swedish patients referred to clinical panel sequencing for colon tumor susceptibility.

RESULTS: Three homozygous carriers of a truncating variant in MLH3, c.3563C>G, p.Ser1188Ter, were identified among the index cases from the Finnish series. An additional biallelic carrier of the same variant was present in the Swedish series. All four patients shared a 0.8-Mb core haplotype around MLH3, suggesting a founder variant. Colorectal polyps from variant carriers showed no instability at mono-, di-, tri-, or tetranucleotide repeats, in agreement with previous findings of a minor role of MLH3 in MMR. Multiple loci were affected by loss of heterozygosity, suggesting chromosomal instability.

CONCLUSION: Our results show that a biallelic nonsense variant of MLH3 underlies a novel syndrome with susceptibility to classical or attenuated adenomatous polyposis and possibly extracolonic tumors, including breast cancer.

Genet Med. 2018 Dec 21. [Epub ahead of print]

PubMed ID: 30573798