BioProject

Primary skin fibroblasts from a HGPS patient and an age-matched control wild-type individual were challenged in a standard transformation assay by retroviral introduction of TERT (T), V12-HRAS (R) and SV40 large and small T antigens (S). More...

Primary skin fibroblasts from a HGPS patient and an age-matched control wild-type individual were challenged in a standard transformation assay by retroviral introduction of TERT (T), V12-HRAS (R) and SV40 large and small T antigens (S). Knock-down of BRD4 in this TRS-HGPS cell line (TRS-HGPS-shBRD4) was achieved by retroviral introduction of independent shRNAs (shBRD4-1 to -3) Abstract: Advanced age and DNA damage accumulation are strong risk factors for cancer. The premature-aging disorder Hutchinson Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS) provides a unique opportunity to study the interplay between DNA damage and aging-associated tumor mechanisms, since HGPS patients do not develop tumors despite elevated levels of DNA damage. Here, we have used HGPS patient cells to identify a protective mechanism to oncogenesis. We find that HGPS cells are resistant to neo-plastic transformation. This resistance is mediated by the bromodomain protein BRD4, which exhibits altered genome-wide binding patterns in transformation-resistant cells leading to inhibition of oncogenic de-differentiation. BRD4 also in-hibits, albeit to a lower extent, the tumorigenic potential of transformed cells from healthy individuals and BRD4-mediated tumor protection is clinically relevant, since a BRD4 gene signature predicts positive clinical outcome in breast and lung cancer. Our results demonstrate a protective function for BRD4 and suggest tissue-specific functions for BRD4 in tumorigenesis. Overall design: 2 biological replicates are included for TRS-WT and TRS-HGPS cell lines. 3 biological replicates are included for TRS-HGPS-shBRD4 (derived from 3 independent shRNAs against BRD4) Less...