Abstract 146: Development of a novel pediatric patient-derived xenograft model with THPO and NDUFB3 mutations
Authors: Shilyansky Jonathan , Chan Casandro J. , Coleman Kristen L. , Leidinger Mariah , Bhagavathi Sharathkumar , Sharathkumar Anjali , Ear Po Hien 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Familial myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN) of childhood are extremely rare and have propensity towards malignant transformation such as leukemia and lymphoma. Due to the rarity of these cases, few cellular and mouse models are available for understanding the tumor biology. Therefore, the molecular mechanisms of malignant transformation remain poorly understood limiting the therapeutic progress to treat these conditions. Here, we report the development of a novel pediatric patient-derived xenograft (PDX) mouse model harboring mutations in the THPO and mitochondrial subunit NDUFB3 genes and characterization of their functions. THPO is a regulator of hematopoiesis and induces trilineage hematopoiesis through HSPC proliferation while NDUFB3 is a subunit of the mitochondrial complex 1. We isolated malignant cells from an enlarged spleen sample and blood sample from a pediatric patient with TPO mediated MPN and established a PDX model (PDX-2333) that recapitulates the patient’s disease. Short tandem repeat analyses confirmed an exact match between the PDX-2333 tumors and patient samples. Exome and Sanger sequencing analyses were performed to identify mutations. Immunohistochemistry staining was used for tumor characterization. Wildtype (WT) and mutant forms of NDUFB3 genes were cloned into expression plasmids with a puromycin selection marker and stably transfected in HEK-293 cells. Stable clones of HEK-293 overexpressing WT and NDUFB3 mutants were tested for growth and sensitivity to anti-cancer therapies. We established a novel PDX model of lymphomagenesis harboring unique mutations in THPO and NDUFB3 genes. The THPO (c.-52C&gt;T) mutation in upstream open reading frame causes loss of inhibition of THPO mRNA expression. The NDUFB3 (c.23 A&gt;G) mutation results in a change of amino acid from glutamine 8 (E8) to glycine 8 (G8) (Ndufb3_E8) and is highly conserved in many vertebrate species. HEK-293 cell lines stably overexpressing WT or NDUFB3 mutants were tested for growth and their sensitivity to ruxolitinib, a Jak2 inhibitor and doxorubicin, an FDA-approved treatment for leukemia and lymphoma. Our data showed that cells overexpressing Ndufb3_E8 have increased proliferation and are highly resistant to ruxolitinib and doxorubicin in comparison to the WT NDUFB3. Developing a novel pediatric PDX model and exome sequencing allow us to identify novel genes involved in malignant transformation leading to lymphoma development. Our data demonstrated that mutations in the THPO (c.-52C&gt;T) and NDUFB3 (c.23 A&gt;G) genes play a key role in the pathogenesis of a lymphoma and in regulating drug sensitivity.
Citation Format: Jonathan Shilyansky, Casandro J. Chan, Kristen L. Coleman, Mariah Leidinger, Sharathkumar Bhagavathi, Anjali Sharathkumar, Po Hien Ear. Development of a novel pediatric patient-derived xenograft model with THPO and NDUFB3 mutations [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2024; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2024 Apr 5-10; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(6_Suppl):Abstract nr 146.