Singh, Namit

Abstract The relevance of many BRCA2 variants of uncertain significance (VUS) to breast cancer has not been determined due to limited genetic information from families carrying these alterations. Here, we classified six new variants as pathogenic or nonpathogenic by analysis of genetic information from families carrying 64 individual BRCA2 DNA binding domain (DBD) missense mutations using a multifactorial likelihood model of cancer causality. Next, we evaluated the use of a homology-directed DNA break repair (HDR) functional assay as a method for inferring the clinical relevance of VUS in the DBD of BRCA2 using 18 established nonpathogenic missense variants and all 13 established pathogenic missense mutations from the BRCA2 DBD. Compared with the known status of these variants based on the multifactorial likelihood model, the sensitivity of the HDR assay for pathogenic mutations was estimated at 100% [95% confidence interval (CI): 75.3%–100%] and specificity was estimated at 100% (95% CI: 81.5%–100%). A statistical classifier for predicting the probability of pathogenicity of BRCA2 DBD variants was developed using these functional results. When applied to 33 additional VUS, the classifier identified eight with 99% or more probability of nonpathogenicity and 18 with 99% or more probability of pathogenicity. Thus, in the absence of genetic evidence, a cell-based HDR assay can provide a probability of pathogenicity for all VUS in the BRCA2 DBD, suggesting that the assay can be used in combination with other information to determine the cancer relevance of BRCA2 VUS. Cancer Res; 73(1); 265–75. ©2012 AACR.

Tyr142, the C-terminal amino acid of histone variant H2A.X is phosphorylated by WSTF (Williams-Beuren syndrome transcription factor), a component of the WICH complex (WSTF-ISWI chromatin-remodeling complex), under basal conditions in the cell. In response to DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), H2A.X is instantaneously phosphorylated at Ser139 by the kinases ATM and ATR and is progressively dephosphorylated at Tyr142 by the Eya1 and Eya3 tyrosine phosphatases, resulting in a temporal switch from a postulated diphosphorylated (pSer139, pTyr142) to monophosphorylated (pSer139) H2A.X state. How mediator proteins interpret these two signals remains a question of fundamental interest. We provide structural, biochemical, and cellular evidence that Microcephalin (MCPH1), an early DNA damage response protein, can read both modifications via its tandem BRCA1 C-terminal (BRCT) domains, thereby emerging as a versatile sensor of H2A.X phosphorylation marks. We show that MCPH1 recruitment to sites of DNA damage is linked to both states of H2A.X.

Abstract Microcephalin (MCPH1), the first gene identified as causative for primary recessive autosomal microcephaly, is aberrantly expressed in autism-like disorders and human malignancy of breast and ovarian origin. MCPH1, the encoded protein product, has been implicated in various cellular processes including the DNA damage checkpoint, DNA repair and transcription. While our understanding of the cellular context in which MCPH1 operates continues to develop, a structural understanding of the C-terminal tandem BRCT domains of MCPH1 remains unexplored. Here, we identify Cdc27, a component of the anaphase-promoting complex (APC/C), as a novel interacting partner of MCPH1. We provide in vitro and in vivo evidence that the C-terminal tandem BRCT domains of MCPH1 (C-BRCTs) bind Cdc27 in a phosphorylation-dependent manner. To further characterize this interaction, we determined the structure of MCPH1 C-BRCTs in complex with a phosphorylated Cdc27 peptide (pCdc27) using X-ray crystallography. Based on this structure, we identified single amino acid mutations targeted at the binding interface that disrupted the MCPH1-pCdc27 interaction. Collectively, our data defines the biochemical, structural and cellular determinants of the novel interaction between MCPH1 and Cdc27 and suggests that this interaction may occur within the larger context of MCPH1-APC/C. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2133. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-2133