BRCA1 secondary splice-site mutations drive exon-skipping and PARP inhibitor resistance

Bibliographic Details
Title: BRCA1 secondary splice-site mutations drive exon-skipping and PARP inhibitor resistance
Authors: Ksenija Nesic, John J. Krais, Yifan Wang, Cassandra J. Vandenberg, Pooja Patel, Kathy Q. Cai, Tanya Kwan, Elizabeth Lieschke, Gwo-Yaw Ho, Holly E. Barker, Justin Bedo, Silvia Casadei, Andrew Farrell, Marc Radke, Kristy Shield-Artin, Jocelyn S. Penington, Franziska Geissler, Elizabeth Kyran, Robert Betsch, Lijun Xu, Fan Zhang, Alexander Dobrovic, Inger Olesen, Rebecca Kristeleit, Amit Oza, Iain McNeish, Gayanie Ratnayake, Nadia Traficante, Australian Ovarian Cancer Study, Anna DeFazio, David D. L. Bowtell, Thomas C. Harding, Kevin Lin, Elizabeth M. Swisher, Olga Kondrashova, Clare L. Scott, Neil Johnson, Matthew J. Wakefield
Source: Molecular Cancer, Vol 23, Iss 1, Pp 1-10 (2024)
Publisher Information: BMC, 2024.
Publication Year: 2024
Collection: LCC:Neoplasms. Tumors. Oncology. Including cancer and carcinogens
Subject Terms: Neoplasms. Tumors. Oncology. Including cancer and carcinogens, RC254-282
More Details: Abstract PARP inhibitor (PARPi) therapy has transformed outcomes for patients with homologous recombination DNA repair (HRR) deficient ovarian cancers, for example those with BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene defects. Unfortunately, PARPi resistance is common. Multiple resistance mechanisms have been described, including secondary mutations that restore the HR gene reading frame. BRCA1 splice isoforms △11 and △11q can contribute to PARPi resistance by splicing out the mutation-containing exon, producing truncated, partially functional proteins. However, the clinical impacts and underlying drivers of BRCA1 exon skipping are not fully understood. We analyzed nine ovarian and breast cancer patient derived xenografts (PDX) with BRCA1 exon 11 frameshift mutations for exon skipping and therapy response, including a matched PDX pair derived from a patient pre- and post-chemotherapy/PARPi. BRCA1 exon 11 skipping was elevated in PARPi resistant PDX tumors. Two independent PDX models acquired secondary BRCA1 splice site mutations (SSMs) that drive exon skipping, confirmed using qRT-PCR, RNA sequencing, immunoblotting and minigene modelling. CRISPR/Cas9-mediated disruption of splicing functionally validated exon skipping as a mechanism of PARPi resistance. SSMs were also enriched in post-PARPi ovarian cancer patient cohorts from the ARIEL2 and ARIEL4 clinical trials. Few PARPi resistance mechanisms have been confirmed in the clinical setting. While secondary/reversion mutations typically restore a gene’s reading frame, we have identified secondary mutations in patient cohorts that hijack splice sites to enhance mutation-containing exon skipping, resulting in the overexpression of BRCA1 hypomorphs, which in turn promote PARPi resistance. Thus, BRCA1 SSMs can and should be clinically monitored, along with frame-restoring secondary mutations.
Document Type: article
File Description: electronic resource
Language: English
ISSN: 1476-4598
Relation: https://doaj.org/toc/1476-4598
DOI: 10.1186/s12943-024-02048-1
Access URL: https://doaj.org/article/8f0a9b712db94dd79db01d43d570add9
Accession Number: edsdoj.8f0a9b712db94dd79db01d43d570add9
Database: Directory of Open Access Journals
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More Details
ISSN:14764598
DOI:10.1186/s12943-024-02048-1
Published in:Molecular Cancer
Language:English