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Divergent mutational processes distinguish hypoxic and normoxic tumours

  • PCAWG Consortium
  • Ontario Institute for Cancer Research
  • University of Toronto
  • University of California at Los Angeles
  • Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
  • The Christie NHS Foundation Trust
  • University of Manchester
  • Vector Institute
  • University of Helsinki
  • Wellcome Trust Genome Campus
  • Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
  • The University of Tokyo
  • The University of Chicago
  • Keimyung University
  • Gachon University
  • Hiroshima University
  • University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
  • King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre
  • Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO)
  • Heinrich Pette Institute - Leibniz Institute for Experimental Virology
  • University of Hamburg
  • National Institutes of Health
  • University of California at San Diego
  • Provincial Health Services Authority
  • University of Melbourne
  • University of Santiago de Compostela
  • University of Vigo
  • Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust
  • Baylor College of Medicine
  • Jackson Laboratory
  • Kiel University
  • Ulm University
  • University of Queensland
  • Northern Care Alliance NHS Group
  • University and Hospital Trust of Verona
  • Oregon Health and Science University
  • University College London
  • Washington University St. Louis
  • National Cancer Center Japan
  • German Aerospace Center
  • Tokyo Women's Medical University
  • Los Alamos National Laboratory
  • Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
  • Toronto General Hospital
  • German Cancer Research Center
  • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
  • University of Oslo
  • European Molecular Biology Laboratory

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

120 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Many primary tumours have low levels of molecular oxygen (hypoxia), and hypoxic tumours respond poorly to therapy. Pan-cancer molecular hallmarks of tumour hypoxia remain poorly understood, with limited comprehension of its associations with specific mutational processes, non-coding driver genes and evolutionary features. Here, as part of the ICGC/TCGA Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes (PCAWG) Consortium, which aggregated whole genome sequencing data from 2658 cancers across 38 tumour types, we quantify hypoxia in 1188 tumours spanning 27 cancer types. Elevated hypoxia associates with increased mutational load across cancer types, irrespective of underlying mutational class. The proportion of mutations attributed to several mutational signatures of unknown aetiology directly associates with the level of hypoxia, suggesting underlying mutational processes for these signatures. At the gene level, driver mutations in TP53, MYC and PTEN are enriched in hypoxic tumours, and mutations in PTEN interact with hypoxia to direct tumour evolutionary trajectories. Overall, hypoxia plays a critical role in shaping the genomic and evolutionary landscapes of cancer.

Original languageEnglish
Article number737
Pages (from-to)1-10
JournalNature Communications
Volume11
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2020

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

  1. SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being
    SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being

OECD Field of Science

  • 3. Medical and Health Sciences

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