Identification of novel susceptibility markers for the risk of overall breast cancer as well as subtypes defined by hormone receptor status in the Chinese population

Single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with female breast cancer susceptibility in Chinese population

Breast cancer is a complex disease influenced by both external and internal factors, among which genetic factors play a critical role. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are major contributors to the heritability of breast cancer, and their frequencies vary across ethnic groups. In this study, we aimed to investigate the association between 34 SNPs identified in previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and overall breast cancer risk, as well as breast cancer subtypes, in the Chinese female population. To accomplish this, we conducted an extensive association analysis using the high-throughput Sequenom MassARRAY® platform in a case-control study comprising 1848 breast cancer patients and 709 healthy controls. Our analysis, which utilized the SNPassoc package in R based on chi-squared (χ2) test and genetic model analysis, identified significant associations between breast cancer risk and SNP rs12493607 (TGFBR2, risk allele C, OR = 1.28 [1.11-1.47], P = 0.0005), as well as a less conservatively significant association with rs4784227 (CASC16, risk allele T, OR = 1.24 [1.08-1.42], P = 0.0017) and rs2046210 (ESR1, risk allele A, OR = 1.50 [1.16-1.95], P = 0.0016). Furthermore, our stratified analyses revealed that rs12493607 was significantly associated with invasive carcinoma, estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, progesterone receptor (PR)-positive, HER2-negative, and young (aged younger than 45) breast cancer. SNP rs4784227 and rs3803662 (CASC16) were associated with invasive carcinoma and ER-positive breast cancer, while rs2046210 was linked to ductal carcinoma in situ, ER-negative, PR-negative, HER2-positive, and elder (aged more than 45) breast cancers. SNPs rs10484919 (ESR1) and rs1038304 (CCDC170) showed links to HER2-positive breast cancer, and rs616488 (PEX14) with premenopausal breast cancer. In summary, our study shed light on the relationship between SNPs and breast cancer susceptibility within a vast Chinese cohort, supporting the development of polygenetic risk scores for the Chinese population. These findings provide valuable insights into the genetic basis of breast cancer and have important implications for risk prediction, early detection, and personalized treatment of this disease.

Association between the CASC16 rs4784227 polymorphism and breast cancer risk and prognosis in a northeast Chinese Han population

Background

Breast cancer (BC) poses a serious threat to women worldwide. This research was designed to explore the association between the rs4784227 polymorphism of cancer susceptibility candidate gene 16 (CASC16) and BC susceptibility and prognosis, aiming to provide further information for the early detection of BC and to accelerate comprehensive cancer management.

Methods

A total of 1,733 subjects were recruited for this case-control study, of which 828 are BC patients and 905 are healthy individuals. The relevance between SNP rs4784227 and BC risk in diverse genetic models was analyzed by using the SNPStats analysis program and was assessed by odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using the binary logistic regression model. Pearson's χ ² test was used to determine the correlation between the polymorphism and clinical characteristics of BC patients. Additionally, univariate survival analysis was performed by the Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test, and multivariate survival analysis was performed by Cox regression.

Results

SNP rs4784227 was significantly associated with susceptibility to BC in the dominant model (CT/TT versus CC, OR = 1.237, 95% CI = 1.012-1.513, P = 0.038). The minor allele of SNP rs4784227 was significantly linked to an increased risk of BC (OR = 1.197, 95% CI = 1.022-1.401, P = 0.026). In addition, the rs4784227 polymorphism of CASC16 was associated with perineural invasion (P = 0.030), menstrual status (P = 0.016) and histological grade (P = 0.001, P = 0.003, P = 0.025; respectively) of BC patients. There was no significant association between the genotypes of rs4784227 and disease-free survival (DFS) or overall survival (OS) of breast cancer patients (P > 0.05).

Conclusions

The rs4784227 polymorphism of CASC16 may affect susceptibility to breast cancer and is associated with perineural invasion, menstrual status and histological grade in BC patients. Additionally, our results could not confirm that this polymorphism was related to breast cancer prognosis.

The correlation of leukocyte-specific protein 1 (LSP1) rs3817198(T>C) polymorphism with breast cancer: A meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Multiple studies have investigated the correlation of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in leukocyte-specific protein 1 (LSP1) with susceptibility to breast cancer (BC) and have yielded inconsistent conclusions, particularly rs3817198(T > C). Consequently, we performed a meta-analysis to estimate this relationship more comprehensively.

METHODS

Four databases were utilized to locate eligible publications: PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure. This meta-analysis included 14 studies, including 22 reports of 33194 cases and 36661 controls. The relationship of rs3817198 polymorphism with breast cancer was estimated using odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The LSP1 co-expression network was constructed by STRING, and Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses were performed using DAVIDE. Download TCGA breast cancer mRNA-seq data and analyze the relationship between LSP1 expression and breast cancer chemotherapy sensitivity.

RESULTS

The results indicated that rs3817198(T > C) was positively correlated to with breast malignancy (dominant model: OR = 1.11, 95%CI = 1.06-1.17; recessive model: OR = 1.10, 95%CI = 1.04-1.15; heterozygous model: OR = 1.09, 95%CI = 1.04-1.15; homozygous model: OR = 1.18, 95%CI = 1.09-1.28; additive model: OR = 1.09, 95%CI = 1.05-1.13), among Caucasians and Asians. However, rs3817198(T > C) may reduce the risk of breast carcinoma in Africans. Rs3817198(T > C) might result in breast carcinoma in individuals with BRCA1 and BRCA2 variants and can contribute to estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast carcinoma. The expression of LSP1 was inversely correlated with the IC50 of doxorubicin (P = 8.91e-15, Cor = -0.23), 5-fluorouracil (P = 1.18e-22, Cor = -0.29), and cisplatin (P = 1.35e-42, Cor = -0.40).

CONCLUSION

Our study identified that LSP1 rs3817198 polymorphism might result in breast malignancy, particularly among Caucasians and Asians, but lower breast cancer susceptibility in African populations. The expression of LSP1 was negatively correlated with the IC50 of doxorubicin, 5-fluorouracil, and cisplatin.

The impact of consanguinity on women's attitudes toward molecular testing of breast cancer in Saudi Arabia

Background: Breast cancer is the most common cancer in adult women in Saudi Arabia; however, awareness about molecular testing for breast cancer is insufficient. The authors aimed to assess knowledge and attitudes to determine sociodemographic factors that correlate with perceptions of genetic testing among Saudi women. Materials & methods: This cross-sectional community-based study used a questionnaire to investigate the relationships between various social and economic factors. Results: There was a significant difference in interest in undergoing molecular testing between women in consanguineous and non-consanguineous marriages. Conclusion: The data show that consanguinity adds an extra layer of complexity to other sociodemographic barriers that hinder the efficacy of early breast cancer detection and prevention programs in Saudi Arabia.

Impact of NR5A2 and RYR2 3'UTR polymorphisms on the risk of breast cancer in a Chinese Han population

OBJECTIVES

The NR5A2 and RYR2 genes are important players in steroid metabolism and play an important role in cancer research. In this research, we want to evaluate the effect of NR5A2 and RYR2 polymorphisms on breast cancer (BC).

METHODS

Four single nucleotide polymorphisms on NR5A2 and RYR2 were selected to genotype by Agena MassARRAY in 379 BC patients and 407 healthy controls. Using the PLINK software to calculate the Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) via the logistic regression analysis to evaluate the risk for BC.

RESULTS

We found that NR5A2 rs2246209 significantly decreased the risk of BC with the AA genotype (OR 0.58, 95%CI 0.34-0.99, p = 0.049), and recessive model (OR 0.59, 95%CI 0.35-0.99, p = 0.046); rs12594 in the RYR2 gene significantly decreased the risk of BC in the GG genotype (OR 0.44, 95%CI 0.22-0.88, p = 0.020), and recessive model (OR 0.43, 95%CI 0.21-0.85, p = 0.016). Further stratification analysis showed that NR5A2 rs2246209 was related to a lower incidence of BC affected by age, lymph nodes metastasis, and tumor stage; RYR2 rs12594 was related to a decreased BC risk restricted by age, estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), menopausal status, tumor size, and tumor stage. Rs12594 in the RyR2 gene remained significant on the genetic susceptibility of PR-positive BC after Bonferroni correction (p < 0.0125).

CONCLUSIONS

This study provides an evidence that NR5A2 rs2246209 and RYR2 rs12594 decreased the risk of breast cancer.

FAM46B inhibits cell proliferation and cell cycle progression in prostate cancer through ubiquitination of β-catenin

FAM46B is a member of the family with sequence similarity 46. Little is known about the expression and functional role(s) of FAM46B in prostate cancer (PC). In this study, the expression of FAM46B expression in The Cancer Genome Atlas, GSE55945, and an independent hospital database was measured by bioinformatics and real-time PCR analysis. After PC cells were transfected with siRNA or a recombinant vector in the absence or presence of a β-catenin signaling inhibitor (XAV-939), the expression levels of FAM46B, C-myc, Cyclin D1, and β-catenin were measured by western blot and real-time PCR. Cell cycle progression and cell proliferation were measured by flow cytometry and the CCK-8 assay. The effects of FAM46B on tumor growth and protein expression in nude mice with PC tumor xenografts were also measured. Our results showed that FAM46B was downregulated but that β-catenin was upregulated in patients with PC. FAM46B silencing promoted cell proliferation and cell cycle progression in PC, which were abrogated by XAV-939. Moreover, FAM46B overexpression inhibited PC cell cycle progression and cell proliferation in vitro and tumor growth in vivo. FAM46B silencing promoted β-catenin protein expression through the inhibition of β-catenin ubiquitination. Our data clearly show that FAM46B inhibits cell proliferation and cell cycle progression in PC through ubiquitination of β-catenin.

A little-studied protein may help in early diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer (PC), one of the most common cancers in men. Because early-stage PC causes few symptoms, many patients are not diagnosed until later stages, when treatment options are limited. New methods for early diagnosis and treatment are actively sought. Proteins in the FAM46 family are known to be involved in many types of cancer. Dongliang Yan at Shanghai Sixth People’s Hospital East and co-workers investigated what role one protein in this family, FAM46B, might play in PC. Analysis of tumor samples showed that FAM46B levels were much lower in PC than in healthy tissues. These changes were linked to another tumor-associated protein, β-catenin. In further tests in mice, artificially increasing FAM46B levels decreased tumor size. These results could improve treatments for PC.

Genetic determinants of sporadic breast cancer in Sri Lankan women

Background

While a range of common genetic variants have been identified to be associated with risk of sporadic breast cancer in several Western studies, little is known about their role in South Asian populations. Our objective was to examine the association between common genetic variants in breast cancer related genes and risk of breast cancer in a cohort of Sri Lankan women.

Methods

A case-control study of 350 postmenopausal women with breast cancer and 350 healthy postmenopausal women was conducted. Genotyping using the iPLEX GOLD assay was done for 56 haplotype-tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 36 breast cancer related genes. Testing for association was done using an additive genetic model. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated using adjusted logistic regression models.

Results

Four SNPs [rs3218550 (XRCC2), rs6917 (PHB), rs1801516 (ATM), and rs13689 (CDH1)] were significantly associated with risk of breast cancer. The rs3218550 T allele and rs6917 A allele increased breast cancer risk by 1.5-fold and 1.4-fold, respectively. The CTC haplotype defined by the SNPs rs3218552|rs3218550|rs3218536 on chromosome 7 (P = 0.0088) and the CA haplotype defined by the SNPs rs1049620|rs6917 on chromosome 17 (P = 0.0067) were significantly associated with increased risk of breast cancer. The rs1801516 A allele and the rs13689 C allele decreased breast cancer risk by 0.6-fold and 0.7-fold, respectively.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that common genetic polymorphisms in the XRCC2, PHB, CDH1 and ATM genes are associated with risk of breast cancer among Sri Lankan postmenopausal women. The exact biological mechanisms of how these variants regulate overall breast cancer risk need further evaluation using functional studies.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12885-018-4112-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.