Asxl1 gene is mutated and/or deleted with high frequencies in multiple forms of myeloid malignancies including CMML, MDS, MPN and AML. The majority of the Asxl1 mutations in these patients are heterozygous, leading to nonsense/frameshift, suggesting loss of function. Mutations in ASXL1 are associated with poor prognosis. Therefore, ASXL1 has been speculated to be a putative tumor suppressor gene that is strongly implicated in the pathogenesis of myeloid malignancies. The objective of this project is to define the physiological function of ASXL1 and its role in the pathogenesis of myeloid malignancies. We generated several Asxl1-targeted murine models. Haploinsufficiency of Asxl1 (+/-) leads to the development of MDS in mice, which can progress to MDS/MPN and leukemia as they age. The Asxl1-targeted mouse model, therefore, recapitulates the pathologic situation of patients with myeloid malignancy, thus allows us to gain the needed information about Asxl1 biology in a timely fashion. Deleting Asxl1 leads to increased apoptosis and mitosis of bone marrow cells, characteristic cellular feature of MDS. A competitive reconstitution assay showed that Asxl1-/- hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSC/HPCs) had a decreased hematopoietic repopulating capacity. We, therefore, hypothesize that Asxl1 acts as a tumor suppressor in myelopoiesis by altering the behavior of HSC/HPCs. We will test this hypothesis in 3 specific aims:
Aim 1 : To determine if Asxl1 acts as a tumor suppressor in myelopoiesis by characterizing the phenotype of various Asxl1-deficient mice, including MxCre or Vav1Cre mediated Asxl1 conditional knock-out mice. In addition, we will evaluate the role of Asxl1 haploinsufficiency in cooperation with other genetic alterations, such as Nf1 haploinsufficiency, for triggering myeloid malignancies.
Aim 2 : To define the cellular mechanisms by which loss of Asxl1 function in mice leads to myeloid malignancies. Specifically, we will examine the effects of Asxl1 deletion/haploinsufficiency on the proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis and cell cycle o HSC/HPCs. In addition, we will determine the effect of Asxl1 deletion/haploinsufficiency on self-renewal and differentiation potential of HSC/HPCs by serial transplantation.
Aim 3 : To define the molecular mechanisms by which Asxl1 regulates normal hematopoiesis and exerts its tumor suppressor function in myelopoiesis. We will identify Asxl1-target genes by mapping the genomic distribution of Asxl1 and its interacting histone modifying enzymes by ChIP-Seq in Asxl1:Tag and WT or Asxl1-/- HSC/HPCs, respectively. Furthermore, we will dissect Asxl1- deletion induced misregulation of H3 methylation and H2A monoubiquitination in HSC/HPCs with ChIP-Seq and correlate with the gene expression profiling. Accomplishment of these studies allows us to uncover the role of Asxl1 in normal hematopoiesis and in the multiple-step pathogenesis of myeloid malignancies, which may lead to the identification of novel molecular targets for the treatment of patients with myeloid malignancies.

Public Health Relevance

Asxl1 gene is mutated and/or deleted with high frequencies in multiple forms of myeloid malignancies including CMML, MDS, MPN and AML. However, the role of Asxl1 in the development of myeloid malignancies and in normal hematopoiesis remains largely unknown. The major goal of this proposal is to solve these important scientific questions using our newly generated Asxl1-targeted murine models.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
1R01CA172408-01A1
Application #
8628269
Study Section
Molecular Oncogenesis Study Section (MONC)
Program Officer
Mufson, R Allan
Project Start
2014-01-01
Project End
2018-12-31
Budget Start
2014-01-01
Budget End
2014-12-31
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
2014
Total Cost
$323,700
Indirect Cost
$116,200
Name
Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis
Department
Pediatrics
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
603007902
City
Indianapolis
State
IN
Country
United States
Zip Code
46202
Li, Yunan; Zhang, Mingying; Sheng, Mengyao et al. (2018) Therapeutic potential of GSK-J4, a histone demethylase KDM6B/JMJD3 inhibitor, for acute myeloid leukemia. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 144:1065-1077
Luo, Huacheng; Wang, Fei; Zha, Jie et al. (2018) CTCF boundary remodels chromatin domain and drives aberrant HOX gene transcription in acute myeloid leukemia. Blood 132:837-848
Guo, Ying; Yang, Hui; Chen, Shi et al. (2018) Reduced BAP1 activity prevents ASXL1 truncation-driven myeloid malignancy in vivo. Leukemia 32:1834-1837
Yang, Hui; Kurtenbach, Stefan; Guo, Ying et al. (2018) Gain of function of ASXL1 truncating protein in the pathogenesis of myeloid malignancies. Blood 131:328-341
Chu, Yajing; Zhao, Zhigang; Sant, David Wayne et al. (2018) Tet2 Regulates Osteoclast Differentiation by Interacting with Runx1 and Maintaining Genomic 5-Hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC). Genomics Proteomics Bioinformatics 16:172-186
Li, Rong; Zhou, Yuan; Cao, Zeng et al. (2018) TET2 Loss Dysregulates the Behavior of Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stromal Cells and Accelerates Tet2-/--Driven Myeloid Malignancy Progression. Stem Cell Reports 10:166-179
Zhang, Peng; Chen, Zizhen; Li, Rong et al. (2018) Loss of ASXL1 in the bone marrow niche dysregulates hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell fates. Cell Discov 4:4
Li, Zhaomin; Zhang, Peng; Yan, Aimin et al. (2017) ASXL1 interacts with the cohesin complex to maintain chromatid separation and gene expression for normal hematopoiesis. Sci Adv 3:e1601602
Li, Jianping; He, Fuhong; Zhang, Peng et al. (2017) Loss of Asxl2 leads to myeloid malignancies in mice. Nat Commun 8:15456
Pan, Feng; Wingo, Thomas S; Zhao, Zhigang et al. (2017) Tet2 loss leads to hypermutagenicity in haematopoietic stem/progenitor cells. Nat Commun 8:15102

Showing the most recent 10 out of 16 publications