Análise do gene MSH6 em pacientes com síndrome de Lynch

Entre as síndromes hereditárias de predisposição ao câncer colorretal a Síndrome de Lynch é a síndrome mais frequente, sendo causada por mutações germinativas em um dos principais genes envolvidos na via de reparo de mau pareamento do DNA (MMR): MLH1, MSH2, MSH6 e PMS2. Clinicamente, a identificação da síndrome é feita pelos critérios de Amsterdam e Bethesda. Uma de suas características é a idade precoce no diagnóstico de câncer colorretal (~45 anos) assim como de tumores extracolônicos do espectro Lynch. Os genes MLH1 e MSH2 são os mais frequentemente mutados e são associados ao fenótipo clássico da síndrome, enquanto mutações em MSH6 e PMS2 são associadas a um fenótipo atípico. Mutações em MSH6 ocorrem em cerca de 10% dos pacientes, com consideráveis diferenças na frequência entre diferentes populações, e são descritas em famílias com idade mais tardia de aparecimento do câncer colorretal, ocorrência de câncer de endométrio e baixa IMS no tecido tumoral. O objetivo desse trabalho é identificar mutações germinativas pontuais e rearranjos no gene MSH6 em pacientes brasileiros com diagnóstico clínico de Síndrome de Lynch. Para identificação das mutações foram analisadas: a sequência codificadora e as junções éxon-íntron do gene, por PCR seguido de sequenciamento; assim como a presença de rearranjos pela técnica Multiplex Ligation-Dependent Probe Amplification (MLPA). A imunohistoquímica (IHQ) e IMS também foram avaliadas. As amostras de sangue periférico foram coletadas, após a obtenção do consentimento informado, de 68 pacientes com critérios clínicos para a Síndrome de Lynch, 40 pacientes foram classificados pelos critérios de Bethesda e 28 pelos critérios de Amsterdam.Lynch syndrome is the most common inherited colorectal syndrome, caused by germline mutations in one of the major genes involved in mismatch repair (MMR): MLH1, MSH2, MSH6 and PMS2. Clinically, the family identification of Lynch Syndrome is delineated by Amsterdam or Bethesda criteria. The syndrome is characterized by early onset (~45 years) of colorectal cancer, as well as extra-colonic cancer. MLH1 and MSH2 are the genes most commonly mutated in Lynch syndrome. Mutations in these genes are associated with a classical phenotype, whereas mutations in MSH6 and PMS2 are more frequently associated with an atypical phenotype. The mutations affect MSH6 in about 10% of the patients, with considerable differences between populations, and have been described in families with the frequent occurrence of late onset colorectal cancer, occurrence of endometrial cancer and low degree microsatellite instability (MSI) in tumor tissue. In this study we analyzed the coding sequence and intron-exon boundaries of MSH6 gene by PCR followed by direct sequencing; as well as the presence of rearrangements through Multiplex Ligation-Dependent Probe Amplification (MLPA) to identify MSH6 mutations. Immunohistochemistry (IHQ) and IMS of the tumors also were evaluated. Peripheral blood samples were obtained after informed consent from 68 patients with Lynch Syndrome patients, clinically classified as Bethesda (n=40) and Amsterdam (n=28). A total of twenty-six MSH6 sequence alterations were identified by sequencing: six small deletions (all in intronic regions) and twenty single nucleotide variation (seven synonymous and five non synonymous). Three of these variants (c.2006T>C (found in one patient); c.3772C>G (found in one patient); c.719 G>A (found in two patients)) are not classified in the databases researched: HGMD, NCBI and LOVD. These variants were analyzed by in silico predictors and the result suggest that two of them, c.2006T>C and c.3772C>G, are possibly pathogenic. No rearrangements were detected in MSH6 by MLPA. IHQ shows nuclear absence of MSH6 protein in tumor tissue of 22 patients (32%), and IMS was observed in 19 (61%) patients. Despite the absence of mutations, IHQ analysis showed that the MSH6 protein is absent in a considerable portion of the samples, which indicates that other genes or other processes must be interfering in the MSH6 protein expression. Additional analysis of MSH2 sequence by other group, with the same patients, detected eight pathogenic mutations that can explain 36% of loss in MSH6 protein. These results suggest that sequencing of only MSH6 in cases of loss of MSH6 expression is not sufficient to identify the cause of the IHQ result. Others studies that analyze the MSH6 gene indicate that the prevalence of mutations in this gene seems to be much diversified, despite the small sample size, this results suggests that MSH6 appears to be responsible for a small percentage of Lynch syndrome cases in this population