Sihan Wu, Vineet Bafna, Howard Y Chang, Paul S Mischel
{"title":"Extrachromosomal DNA: An Emerging Hallmark in Human Cancer.","authors":"Sihan Wu, Vineet Bafna, Howard Y Chang, Paul S Mischel","doi":"10.1146/annurev-pathmechdis-051821-114223","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Human genes are arranged on 23 pairs of chromosomes, but in cancer, tumor-promoting genes and regulatory elements can free themselves from chromosomes and relocate to circular, extrachromosomal pieces of DNA (ecDNA). ecDNA, because of its nonchromosomal inheritance, drives high-copy-number oncogene amplification and enables tumors to evolve their genomes rapidly. Furthermore, the circular ecDNA architecture fundamentally alters gene regulation and transcription, and the higher-order organization of ecDNA contributes to tumor pathogenesis. Consequently, patients whose cancers harbor ecDNA have significantly shorter survival. Although ecDNA was first observed more than 50 years ago, its critical importance has only recently come to light. In this review, we discuss the current state of understanding of how ecDNAs form and function as well as how they contribute to drug resistance and accelerated cancer evolution.</p>","PeriodicalId":50753,"journal":{"name":"Annual Review of Pathology-Mechanisms of Disease","volume":"17 ","pages":"367-386"},"PeriodicalIF":28.4000,"publicationDate":"2022-01-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9125980/pdf/nihms-1807975.pdf","citationCount":"37","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Annual Review of Pathology-Mechanisms of Disease","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-pathmechdis-051821-114223","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"PATHOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 37
Abstract
Human genes are arranged on 23 pairs of chromosomes, but in cancer, tumor-promoting genes and regulatory elements can free themselves from chromosomes and relocate to circular, extrachromosomal pieces of DNA (ecDNA). ecDNA, because of its nonchromosomal inheritance, drives high-copy-number oncogene amplification and enables tumors to evolve their genomes rapidly. Furthermore, the circular ecDNA architecture fundamentally alters gene regulation and transcription, and the higher-order organization of ecDNA contributes to tumor pathogenesis. Consequently, patients whose cancers harbor ecDNA have significantly shorter survival. Although ecDNA was first observed more than 50 years ago, its critical importance has only recently come to light. In this review, we discuss the current state of understanding of how ecDNAs form and function as well as how they contribute to drug resistance and accelerated cancer evolution.
期刊介绍:
The Annual Review of Pathology: Mechanisms of Disease is a scholarly journal that has been published since 2006. Its primary focus is to provide a comprehensive overview of recent advancements in our knowledge of the causes and development of significant human diseases. The journal places particular emphasis on exploring the current and evolving concepts of disease pathogenesis, as well as the molecular genetic and morphological changes associated with various diseases. Additionally, the journal addresses the clinical significance of these findings.
In order to increase accessibility and promote the broad dissemination of research, the current volume of the journal has transitioned from a gated subscription model to an open access format. This change has been made possible through the Annual Reviews' Subscribe to Open program, which allows all articles published in this volume to be freely accessible to readers. As part of this transition, all articles in the journal are published under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license, which encourages open sharing and use of the research.