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Cancer genomics

Chromatin influence on cancer mutation rate

Nature Reviews Genetics volume 13, pages 596–597 (2012)Cite this article

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The authors first identified 84,879 unique single-nucleotide variants (SNV) from four types of cancer cell genomes: leukaemia, melanoma, small-cell lung cancer and prostate. By subtracting the base changes seen in normal tissue from the same individual, the authors were able to derive a set of somatic mutations. To identify possible causes of the variation in local mutation rate, 46 genetic and epigenetic features that have previously been mapped genome-wide — including CpG content, gene density, nucleosome occupancy, histone modifications and long-range chromatin interactions — were compiled and correlated with the SNV density in pairwise combinations.

mutation rates are elevated in heterochromatin-like domains and reduced in open chromatin

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ORIGINAL RESEARCH PAPER

  1. Schuster-Böckler B & Lehner B. Chromatin organization is a major influence on regional mutation rates in human cancer cells. Nature 22 July 2012 (doi:10.1038/nature11273)

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  1. Bryony Jones
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Jones, B. Chromatin influence on cancer mutation rate. Nat Rev Genet 13, 596–597 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrg3312

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