Nanopore sequencing of full-length BRCA1 mRNA transcripts reveals co-occurrence of known exon skipping events

Abstract Background Laboratory assays evaluating the effect of DNA sequence variants on BRCA1 mRNA splicing may contribute to classification by providing molecular evidence. However, our knowledge of normal and aberrant BRCA1 splicing events to date has been limited to data derived from assays targe...

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Main Authors: Lucy C. de Jong, Simone Cree, Vanessa Lattimore, George A. R. Wiggins, Amanda B. Spurdle, kConFab Investigators, Allison Miller, Martin A. Kennedy, Logan C. Walker
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2017-11-01
Series:Breast Cancer Research
Subjects:
Online Access:http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13058-017-0919-1
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author Lucy C. de Jong
Simone Cree
Vanessa Lattimore
George A. R. Wiggins
Amanda B. Spurdle
kConFab Investigators
Allison Miller
Martin A. Kennedy
Logan C. Walker
author_facet Lucy C. de Jong
Simone Cree
Vanessa Lattimore
George A. R. Wiggins
Amanda B. Spurdle
kConFab Investigators
Allison Miller
Martin A. Kennedy
Logan C. Walker
author_sort Lucy C. de Jong
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Laboratory assays evaluating the effect of DNA sequence variants on BRCA1 mRNA splicing may contribute to classification by providing molecular evidence. However, our knowledge of normal and aberrant BRCA1 splicing events to date has been limited to data derived from assays targeting partial transcript sequences. This study explored the utility of nanopore sequencing to examine whole BRCA1 mRNA transcripts and to provide accurate categorisation of in-frame and out-of-frame splicing events. Methods The exon structure of BRCA1 transcripts from a previously studied control lymphoblastoid cell line were assessed using MinION nanopore sequencing of long-range reverse transcriptase-PCR amplicons. Results Our study identified and characterised 32 complete BRCA1 isoforms, including 18 novel isoforms which showed skipping of multiple contiguous and/or non-contiguous exons. Furthermore, we show that known BRCA1 exon skipping events, such as Δ(9,10) and Δ21, can co-occur in a single transcript, with some isoforms containing four or more alternative splice junctions. Fourteen novel isoforms were formed entirely from a combination of previously identified alternative splice junctions, suggesting that the total number of BRCA1 isoforms might be lower than the number of splicing events reported previously. Conclusions Our results highlight complexity in BRCA1 transcript structure that has not been described previously. This finding has key implications for predicting the translation frame of splicing transcripts, important for interpreting the clinical significance of spliceogenic variants. Future research is warranted to quantitatively assess full-length BRCA1 transcript levels, and to assess the application of nanopore sequencing for routine evaluation of potential spliceogenic variants.
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spelling doaj.art-0adda2710f3a41eda609188b081e49ae2022-12-21T22:11:33ZengBMCBreast Cancer Research1465-542X2017-11-011911910.1186/s13058-017-0919-1Nanopore sequencing of full-length BRCA1 mRNA transcripts reveals co-occurrence of known exon skipping eventsLucy C. de Jong0Simone Cree1Vanessa Lattimore2George A. R. Wiggins3Amanda B. Spurdle4kConFab Investigators5Allison Miller6Martin A. Kennedy7Logan C. Walker8Department of Pathology, University of OtagoDepartment of Pathology, University of OtagoDepartment of Pathology, University of OtagoDepartment of Pathology, University of OtagoGenetics and Computational Biology Division, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research InstitutekConFab, Research Department, Peter MacCallum Cancer CentreDepartment of Pathology, University of OtagoDepartment of Pathology, University of OtagoDepartment of Pathology, University of OtagoAbstract Background Laboratory assays evaluating the effect of DNA sequence variants on BRCA1 mRNA splicing may contribute to classification by providing molecular evidence. However, our knowledge of normal and aberrant BRCA1 splicing events to date has been limited to data derived from assays targeting partial transcript sequences. This study explored the utility of nanopore sequencing to examine whole BRCA1 mRNA transcripts and to provide accurate categorisation of in-frame and out-of-frame splicing events. Methods The exon structure of BRCA1 transcripts from a previously studied control lymphoblastoid cell line were assessed using MinION nanopore sequencing of long-range reverse transcriptase-PCR amplicons. Results Our study identified and characterised 32 complete BRCA1 isoforms, including 18 novel isoforms which showed skipping of multiple contiguous and/or non-contiguous exons. Furthermore, we show that known BRCA1 exon skipping events, such as Δ(9,10) and Δ21, can co-occur in a single transcript, with some isoforms containing four or more alternative splice junctions. Fourteen novel isoforms were formed entirely from a combination of previously identified alternative splice junctions, suggesting that the total number of BRCA1 isoforms might be lower than the number of splicing events reported previously. Conclusions Our results highlight complexity in BRCA1 transcript structure that has not been described previously. This finding has key implications for predicting the translation frame of splicing transcripts, important for interpreting the clinical significance of spliceogenic variants. Future research is warranted to quantitatively assess full-length BRCA1 transcript levels, and to assess the application of nanopore sequencing for routine evaluation of potential spliceogenic variants.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13058-017-0919-1BRCA1SplicingMinIONNanopore sequencingFull-length transcriptExon skipping
spellingShingle Lucy C. de Jong
Simone Cree
Vanessa Lattimore
George A. R. Wiggins
Amanda B. Spurdle
kConFab Investigators
Allison Miller
Martin A. Kennedy
Logan C. Walker
Nanopore sequencing of full-length BRCA1 mRNA transcripts reveals co-occurrence of known exon skipping events
Breast Cancer Research
BRCA1
Splicing
MinION
Nanopore sequencing
Full-length transcript
Exon skipping
title Nanopore sequencing of full-length BRCA1 mRNA transcripts reveals co-occurrence of known exon skipping events
title_full Nanopore sequencing of full-length BRCA1 mRNA transcripts reveals co-occurrence of known exon skipping events
title_fullStr Nanopore sequencing of full-length BRCA1 mRNA transcripts reveals co-occurrence of known exon skipping events
title_full_unstemmed Nanopore sequencing of full-length BRCA1 mRNA transcripts reveals co-occurrence of known exon skipping events
title_short Nanopore sequencing of full-length BRCA1 mRNA transcripts reveals co-occurrence of known exon skipping events
title_sort nanopore sequencing of full length brca1 mrna transcripts reveals co occurrence of known exon skipping events
topic BRCA1
Splicing
MinION
Nanopore sequencing
Full-length transcript
Exon skipping
url http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13058-017-0919-1
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