Abstract
Synovial sarcoma (SS) is cytogenetically characterized by the translocation t(X;18)(p11.2-q11.2) generating a fusion between the SYT gene on chromosome 18 and one member of the SSX family gene (SSX1; SSX2; SSX4) on chromosome X. Here, we report for the first time that 2 forms of SYT mRNA are present in both normal tissues and SSs. By amplifying the full-length SYT cDNA of two SSs, we detected 2 bands, here designated N-SYT and I-SYT. The latter, previously undescribed, contains an in-frame insertion of 93 bp. Its sequencing revealed a 100% homology with the mouse SYT gene. These two SYT forms were present, although in different amounts, in all human normal tissues examined, including kidney, stomach, lung, colon, liver and synovia. Coexistence of N-SYT and I-SYT (both fused with SSX) was detected in a series of 59 SSs (35 monophasic and 24 biphasic) and in a SS cell line. A preliminary analysis of the differential expression levels of N-SYT and I-SYT in SSs revealed that the latter was consistently overexpressed, suggesting a role in SS pathogenesis. © 2001 Cancer Research Campaign
Similar content being viewed by others
Article PDF
Change history
16 November 2011
This paper was modified 12 months after initial publication to switch to Creative Commons licence terms, as noted at publication
References
Antonescu CR, Kawai A, Leung DH, Lonardo F, Woodruff JM, Healey JH and Ladanyi M (2000) Strong association of SYT-SSX fusion type and morphologic epithelial differentiation in synovial sarcoma. Diagn Mol Pathol 9: 1–8
Brett D, Whitehouse S, Per A, Shipley J, Cooper C and Goodwin G (1997) The SYT protein involved in the t(X;18) synovial sarcoma translocation is a transcriptional activator localized in nuclear bodies. Hum Mol Gen 6: 1559–1564
Cielette MK, Socinski MA, Fletcher JA, Corson JM and Craighead JE (1994) Cardiac synovial sarcoma with translocation (X;18) associated with asbestos exposure. Cancer 73: 74–78
Clark J, Roques PJ, Crew AJ, Gill S, Shipley J, Chan AM, Gustere BA and Cooper CS (1994) Identification of novel genes, SYT and SSX, involved in the t(X;18)(p11.2;q11.2) translocation found in human synovial sarcoma. Nat Genet 7: 502–508
Crew AJ, Clark J, Fisher C, Grimed R, Chand A, Shipley J and Mitchell P (1995) Fusion in two genes, SSX1 and SSX2, encoding proteins with homology to the Krupper-associated box in human synovial sarcoma. EMBO J 14: 2333–2340
de Bruijn D, Baats E, Zechner U, de Leeuw B, Balemans M, Olde Weghuis D, Hiring-Folz U and Geurts van Kessel A (1996) Isolation and characterization of the mouse homologue of SYT, a gene implicated in the development of human synovial sarcoma. Oncogene 13: 643–648
DeLeeuw B, Balemans M and Geurts van Kessel A (1996) A novel Krupper-associated box containing SSX gene (SSX3) on the human X chromosome is not implicated in the t(X;18)-positive synovial sarcomas. Cytogenet. Cell Genet 73: 179–183
Dos Santos NR, de Bruijn D, Balemans M, Janssen B, Gartner F, Manuel Lopez J, de Leeuw B and Geurts van Kessel A (1997) Nuclear localization of SYT, SSX, and the synovial sarcoma assiciated SYT-SSX fusion protein. Human Mol Gen 6: 1549–1558
Enzinger FM and Weiss SW (eds) (1995) Soft Tissue Tumors 29: 757–786
Fetsh JF and Meis JM (1993) Synovial sarcoma of the abdominal wall. Cancer 72: 469
Fisher C (1986) Synovial Sarcoma: Ultrastructural and immunohistochemical features of epithelial differentiation in monophasic and biphasic tumors. Hum Path 17: 996–1008
Fritsch M, Epstein JI, Perlman EJ, Watts JC and Argani P (2000) Hum Pathol 31: 246–250
Gure AO, Tureci O, Sahin U, Tsang S, Scanlan MJ, Jager E, Knuth A, Pfreundshuh M, Old LJ and Chen YT (1997) SSX: a multigene family with several members transcribed in normal testis and human cancer. Int J Cancer 72: 965–997
Hisaoka M, Hashimoto H, Iwamasa T, Ishikawa K and Aoki T (1998) Primary synovial sarcoma of the lung: report of two cases confirmed by molecular detection of SYT-SSX fusion gene transcripts. Histopathol 34: 205–210
Kashima T, Matsushita H and Kuroda M (1997) Biphasic synovial sarcoma of the peritoneal cavity with t(X;18) demonstrated by reverse transcriptase polymerase reaction. Pathol Int 47: 637–641
Kawai A, Woodruff J, Healey JH, Brennan MF, Antonescu CR and Ladany M (1998) SYT-SSX gene fusion as a determinant of morphology and prognosis in synovial sarcoma. N Engl J Med 338: 153–160
Lim FL, Soulez M, Koczan D, Thiesen HJ and Knight JC (1998) KRAB-related domain and a novel transcription repression domain in proteins encoded by SSX genes that are destrupted in human sarcomas. Oncogene 17: 2013–2018
Mancuso T, Mezzelani A, Riva C, Fabbri A, Dal Bo L, Sampietro G, Perego P, Casali P, Zunino F, Sozzi G, Pierotti MA and Pilotti S (2000) Analysis of SYT-SSX fusion transcript and bcl2 expression and phosphorylation status in synovial sarcoma. Lab Invest 80: 805–813
Miloro M, Quinn PD and Stewart J (1994) Monophasic spindle sell synovial sarcoma of the head and neck: report of two cases and review of the litterature. J Oral Maxillofac Surg 52: 309–313
Nicholson AG, Goldstraw P and Fisher C (1998) Synovial sarcoma of the pleura and its differentiation from other primary pleural tumours: a clinicopathological and immunohistochemical review of three cases. Histopathol 33: 508–513
Nielsen GP, Shaw PA, Rosenberg AE, Dickersin GR, Young RH and Scully RE (1996) Synovial sarcoma of the vulva: a report of two cases. Mod Pathol 9: 970–974
Nilsson G, Skytting B, Xie Y, Brodin B, Perfekt R, Mandahl N, Lundeberg J, Uhlen M and Larsson O (1999) The SYT-SSX1 variant of synovial sarcoma is associated with a high rate of tumor cell proliferation and poor clinical outcame. Can Res 59: 180–184
Renwick PJ, Reeves BR, Dal Cin P, Fletcher CD, Kempski H, Sciot R, Kazmirerczak B, Jani K, Sonobe H and Knight JC (1995) Two categories of synovial sarcoma defined by divergent chromosome translocation breckpoints in Xp11.2, with implications for histologic subclassification of synovial sarcoma. Cytogenet Cell Genet 70: 58–63
Skytting B, Nilsson B, Brodin B, Xie Y, Lundeberg J, Uhlen M and Larsson O (1999) A novel fusion gene, SYT-SSX4, in synovial sarcoma. J Natl Cancer Inst 91: 974–975
Strubin M, Newel JM and Matthias P (1995) OBF-1, a novel B cell-specific coactivator that stimulated immunoglobulin promoter activity through association with octamer-binding proteins. Cell 80: 497–506
Turc-Carel C, Dal Cin P, Limon J, Rao U, Li FP, Corson JM, Zimmermann R, Parry DM, Cowan JM and Sandberg AA (1987) Involvement of chromosome 18 in primary cytogenetic change in human neoplasia: nonrandom translocation in synovial sarcoma. Proc Nat Acad Sci USA 84: 1981–1985
Tamkun JW, Deuring R, Scott MP, Kissinger M, Pattatucci AM, Kaufman TC and Kennison JA (1992) Brahama: a regulatory of Drosophila homeotic genes structurally related to the yeast transcriptional activator SNF/SW12. Cell 68: 561–571
Tsuji S, Hisakoa M and Morimitsu Y (1998) Detection of SYT-SSX fusion transcripts in synovial sarcoma by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction using archival paraffin embedded tissues. Am J Pathol 153: 1807–1812
Zeren H, Moran CA, Suster S, Fishback NF and Koss MN (1995) Primary pulmonary sarcomas with features of monophasic synovial sarcoma. A clinicopathological, immunohistochemical and ultrastructural study of 25 cases. Hum Pathol 26: 474–480
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
From twelve months after its original publication, this work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
About this article
Cite this article
Tamborini, E., Agus, V., Mezzelani, A. et al. Identification of a novel spliced variant of the SYT gene expressed in normal tissues and in synovial sarcoma. Br J Cancer 84, 1087–1094 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1054/bjoc.2000.1710
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1054/bjoc.2000.1710
Keywords
This article is cited by
-
Synovial sarcoma is a gateway to the role of chromatin remodeling in cancer
Cancer and Metastasis Reviews (2015)
-
Detection of SS18-SSX fusion transcripts in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded neoplasms: analysis of conventional RT-PCR, qRT-PCR and dual color FISH as diagnostic tools for synovial sarcoma
Modern Pathology (2007)
-
SYT, a partner of SYT-SSX oncoprotein in synovial sarcomas, interacts with mSin3A, a component of histone deacetylase complex
Laboratory Investigation (2004)