Abstract

The overall theme of the PPG will be identifying the pathological mechanisms associated with repetitive element de-repression and the concomitant new opportunities for therapeutic development. The major projects will be: Project 1, pathways and mechanisms repressing D4Z4 repeats (Silvere van der Maarel), will identify the molecular mechanisms of repeat element repression. Project 2, repeat derepression and RNA-mediated toxicity in FSHD (Robert Bradley), will determine the molecular consequences and RNA-toxicity associated with de-repression of repetitive elements in the genome. Project 3, targeting the D4Z4 sequence to enhance repeat repression (Stephen Tapscott), will identify mechanisms of enhancing repeat-mediated epigenetic repression as a therapy for FSHD. The Bioresources Core, resources for FSHD research and clinical trials (Rabi Tawil), will provide biological resources necessary for each project and to prepare for clinical trials through development of outcomes measures, including biomarkers and patient assessments. The Administrative Core (Stephen Tapscott) will coordinate the activities and communications among the investigators and provide budgetary and administrative oversight, and coordinate the scientific oversight provided by the External Advisory Board. Together these three Projects and two Cores will address the mechanisms and pathways that converge to epigenetically silence D4Z4 in the repeat-mediated silencing pathways, determine the pathophysiologic consequences of inefficient silencing of repetitive RNAs and accumulation of aberrant RNAs, exploit new opportunities for therapeutic development, and provide the resources necessary for moving studies toward clinical trials.

Public Health Relevance

The significance of the combined Projects and Cores is that it will determine whether repeat-mediated epigenetic silencing and repetitive element expression represent specific pathways that can be targeted for therapeutic intervention in FSHD. The health relatedness of the proposal is that it will provide the basis for clinical therapeutic trial in FHSD.

  Funding Agency

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
Type
Research Program Projects (P01)
Project #
5P01NS069539-08
Application #
9357388
Study Section
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Initial Review Group (NSD)
Program Officer
Nuckolls, Glen H
Project Start
2015-09-30
Project End
2020-09-29
Budget Start
2017-09-30
Budget End
2018-09-29
Support Year
8
Fiscal Year
2017
Total Cost
Indirect Cost

  Institution

Name
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
Department
Type
DUNS #
078200995
City
Seattle
State
WA
Country
United States
Zip Code
98109

  Publications

Lemmers, Richard J L F; van der Vliet, Patrick J; Vreijling, Jeroen P et al. (2018) Cis D4Z4 repeat duplications associated with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy type 2. Hum Mol Genet 27:3488-3497
Lim, Jong-Won; Wong, Chao-Jen; Yao, Zizhen et al. (2018) Small noncoding RNAs in FSHD2 muscle cells reveal both DUX4- and SMCHD1-specific signatures. Hum Mol Genet :
Lemmers, Richard Jlf; van der Vliet, Patrick J; Balog, Judit et al. (2018) Deep characterization of a common D4Z4 variant identifies biallelic DUX4 expression as a modifier for disease penetrance in FSHD2. Eur J Hum Genet 26:94-106
Balog, Judit; Goossens, Remko; Lemmers, Richard J L F et al. (2018) Monosomy 18p is a risk factor for facioscapulohumeral dystrophy. J Med Genet 55:469-478
Campbell, Amy E; Shadle, Sean C; Jagannathan, Sujatha et al. (2018) NuRD and CAF-1-mediated silencing of the D4Z4 array is modulated by DUX4-induced MBD3L proteins. Elife 7:
de Greef, Jessica C; Krom, Yvonne D; den Hamer, Bianca et al. (2018) Smchd1 haploinsufficiency exacerbates the phenotype of a transgenic FSHD1 mouse model. Hum Mol Genet 27:716-731
Campbell, Amy E; Belleville, Andrea E; Resnick, Rebecca et al. (2018) Facioscapulohumeral dystrophy: activating an early embryonic transcriptional program in human skeletal muscle. Hum Mol Genet 27:R153-R162
Mul, Karlien; Heatwole, Chad; Eichinger, Katy et al. (2018) Electrical impedance myography in facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy: A 1-year follow-up study. Muscle Nerve 58:213-218
Hendrickson, Peter G; Doráis, Jessie A; Grow, Edward J et al. (2017) Conserved roles of mouse DUX and human DUX4 in activating cleavage-stage genes and MERVL/HERVL retrotransposons. Nat Genet 49:925-934
Campbell, Amy E; Oliva, Jonathan; Yates, Matthew P et al. (2017) BET bromodomain inhibitors and agonists of the beta-2 adrenergic receptor identified in screens for compounds that inhibit DUX4 expression in FSHD muscle cells. Skelet Muscle 7:16

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