Emerging data implicate the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex as a major tumor suppressor. Over the past [two years], numerous cancer genome sequencing studies have revealed that at least six subunits of the complex are specifically inactivated at high frequency in a variety of human cancers including those of ovary, breast, kidney, lung, pancreas, uterus, bladder, stomach, colon, liver [and skin]. The SWI/SNF complex includes both core and lineage-specific subunits and utilizes the energy of ATP to modulate chromatin structure. My laboratory has demonstrated a potent and bona fide tumor suppressor role for one of the subunits through generation of a knockout mouse model. Providing some insight into mechanism, we have recently established the existence of epigenetic antagonism between SWI/SNF and Polycomb complexes. However, the contributions of the SWI/SNF complex to chromatin structure in vivo and the reasons why each subunit is associated with distinct cancer spectra remain poorly understood. Given the unique chromatin targeting and modification domains found in each subunit, we hypothesize that oncogenesis occurs due to differential mistargeting of residual SWI/SNF complexes and impairment of their chromatin remodeling activity. We further hypothesize that SWI/SNF subunit mutations cause disruption of lineage-specific gene expression programs arising from imbalanced epigenetic antagonism with the Polycomb PRC2 complex. Via the following specific aims, our goals are to determine how the subunits of the SWI/SNF complex contribute to chromatin structure, to establish the mechanism by which mutation of the tumor suppressor subunits drives cancer formation, to determine the extent of epigenetic antagonism between the tumor suppressor subunits and the PRC2 complex, and to identify novel and effective therapeutic targets for SWI/SNF mutant cancers:
Aim 1 : How does loss of individual SWI/SNF tumor suppressor subunits affect the DNA binding, chromatin remodeling activity, and integrity of the SWI/SNF complex, and how does their loss affect gene expression? Aim 2: What is the role of the residual SWI/SNF complex in cancers driven by mutation of SWI/SNF tumor suppressor subunits? Aim 3: What is the relationship between Polycomb complexes and cancers that are driven by SWI/SNF mutations? Significance: Given the increasingly wide spectrum of cancers being found to contain mutations in SWI/SNF subunits, the complex now emerges as having major relevance for human disease. Testing our hypotheses via the proposed specific aims has the potential to elucidate the function of the normal SWI/SNF complex, establish the mechanisms by which mutation of SWI/SNF tumor suppressor subunits drive cancer formation, and identify therapeutic targets for the wide variety of SWI/SNF mutant cancers.
Over the past [two years] it has been discovered that at least six genes that encode subunits of the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex are mutated at high frequency in a variety of human cancers including those of ovary, breast, kidney, lung, pancreas, uterus, bladder, stomach, colon, liver [and melanoma]. Consequently, the SWI/SNF complex has emerged as having major cancer relevance. The SWI/SNF complex has long been the central focus of my research laboratory and here we propose experimental studies to determine how mutation of SWI/SNF subunits cause cancer growth, with a specific goal of identifying new and effective therapeutic targets for these cancers.
| Kuwahara, Yasumichi; Kennedy, Leslie M; Karnezis, Anthony N et al. (2018) High Frequency of Ovarian Cyst Development in Vhl2B/+;Snf5+/- Mice. Am J Pathol 188:1510-1516 |
| Mathur, Radhika; Alver, Burak H; San Roman, Adrianna K et al. (2017) ARID1A loss impairs enhancer-mediated gene regulation and drives colon cancer in mice. Nat Genet 49:296-302 |
| Alver, Burak H; Kim, Kimberly H; Lu, Ping et al. (2017) The SWI/SNF chromatin remodelling complex is required for maintenance of lineage specific enhancers. Nat Commun 8:14648 |
| Wang, Xiaofeng; Lee, Ryan S; Alver, Burak H et al. (2017) SMARCB1-mediated SWI/SNF complex function is essential for enhancer regulation. Nat Genet 49:289-295 |
| Kim, Kimberly H; Roberts, Charles W M (2016) Targeting EZH2 in cancer. Nat Med 22:128-34 |
| Frühwald, Michael C; Biegel, Jaclyn A; Bourdeaut, Franck et al. (2016) Atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumors-current concepts, advances in biology, and potential future therapies. Neuro Oncol 18:764-78 |
| Yin, Jie; Leavenworth, Jianmei W; Li, Yang et al. (2015) Ezh2 regulates differentiation and function of natural killer cells through histone methyltransferase activity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 112:15988-93 |
| Kim, Kimberly H; Kim, Woojin; Howard, Thomas P et al. (2015) SWI/SNF-mutant cancers depend on catalytic and non-catalytic activity of EZH2. Nat Med 21:1491-6 |
| Wu, Jennifer N; Pinello, Luca; Yissachar, Elinor et al. (2015) Functionally distinct patterns of nucleosome remodeling at enhancers in glucocorticoid-treated acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Epigenetics Chromatin 8:53 |
| Helming, Katherine C; Wang, Xiaofeng; Roberts, Charles W M (2014) Vulnerabilities of mutant SWI/SNF complexes in cancer. Cancer Cell 26:309-317 |
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