Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2017 Aug;49(8):1261-1266.
doi: 10.1038/ng.3899. Epub 2017 Jun 26.

Neuroblastoma is composed of two super-enhancer-associated differentiation states

Affiliations

Neuroblastoma is composed of two super-enhancer-associated differentiation states

Tim van Groningen et al. Nat Genet. 2017 Aug.

Abstract

Neuroblastoma and other pediatric tumors show a paucity of gene mutations, which has sparked an interest in their epigenetic regulation. Several tumor types include phenotypically divergent cells, resembling cells from different lineage development stages. It has been proposed that super-enhancer-associated transcription factor (TF) networks underlie lineage identity, but the role of these enhancers in intratumoral heterogeneity is unknown. Here we show that most neuroblastomas include two types of tumor cells with divergent gene expression profiles. Undifferentiated mesenchymal cells and committed adrenergic cells can interconvert and resemble cells from different lineage differentiation stages. ChIP-seq analysis of isogenic pairs of mesenchymal and adrenergic cells identified a distinct super-enhancer landscape and super-enhancer-associated TF network for each cell type. Expression of the mesenchymal TF PRRX1 could reprogram the super-enhancer and mRNA landscapes of adrenergic cells toward a mesenchymal state. Mesenchymal cells were more chemoresistant in vitro and were enriched in post-therapy and relapse tumors. Two super-enhancer-associated TF networks, which probably mediate lineage control in normal development, thus dominate epigenetic control of neuroblastoma and shape intratumoral heterogeneity.

PubMed Disclaimer

Comment in

References

    1. Nature. 2012 Feb 22;483(7391):589-93 - PubMed
    1. Cell. 2013 Nov 7;155(4):934-47 - PubMed
    1. Bioinformatics. 2011 Mar 15;27(6):870-1 - PubMed
    1. Nature. 1975 Apr 3;254(5499):443-4 - PubMed
    1. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2009 Aug 18;106(33):13921-6 - PubMed