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Method Article
Here, we describe a combined flow cytometric cell sorting and low-input, next-generation library construction protocol designed to produce high-quality, whole-exome data from the Hodgkin Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells of classical Hodgkin lymphoma (CHL).
The Hodgkin Reed-Sternberg cells of classical Hodgkin lymphoma are sparsely distributed within a background of inflammatory lymphocytes and typically comprise less than 1% of the tumor mass. Material derived from bulk tumor contains tumor content at a concentration insufficient for characterization. Therefore, fluorescence activated cell sorting using eight antibodies, as well as side- and forward-scatter, is described here as a method of rapidly separating and concentrating with high purity thousands of HRS cells from the tumor for subsequent study. At the same time, because standard protocols for exome sequencing typically require 100-1,000 ng of input DNA, which is often too high, even with flow sorting, we also provide an optimized, low-input library construction protocol capable of producing high-quality data from as little as 10 ng of input DNA. This combination is capable of producing next-generation libraries suitable for hybridization capture of whole-exome baits or more focused targeted panels, as desired. Exome sequencing of the HRS cells, when compared against healthy intratumor T or B cells, can identify somatic alterations, including mutations, insertions and deletions, and copy number alterations. These findings elucidate the molecular biology of HRS cells and may reveal avenues for targeted drug treatments.
Advancements in cancer genomics as a result of next-generation sequencing have led to significant breakthroughs in the identification of therapeutic targets and in prognostication for many hematologic and non-hematologic neoplasms. New individualized treatment strategies based on specific genomic alterations are rapidly being introduced in many tumor types (reviewed in references1,2). Despite significant progress in lymphoma genomics, the genome of the neoplastic HRS cells in classical Hodgkin lymphoma (CHL) had been underexplored. The investigations have been hampered by the scarcity of neoplastic HRS cells within a reactive microenvironment, making it difficult to isolate purified HRS cell populations3.
The method for isolating viable HRS cells from primary tumors was developed by Fromm et al.4,5,6. The method uses an eight-antibody cocktail, consisting of CD30, CD15, CD40, CD95, CD45 CD20, CD5, and CD64, to unequivocally identify HRS cells from a CHL tumor suspension. Using this methodology, we are able to isolate at least 1,000 viable HRS cells from fresh or frozen cell suspensions from tumor biopsies consisting of at least 107 cells (approximately 10 mg of tissue). The purity is greater than 90% by flow cytometric analysis and is estimated to be least 80% by exome genomic analysis of ten consecutive cases.
We have refined a flow cytometric cell isolation technique that has greatly eased the process, allowing for the rapid isolation of thousands of viable HRS cells from primary CHL tumors7. We have utilized the technique to produce what is believed to be the first whole-exome sequence of the tumor cells in primary cases of Hodgkin lymphoma. Our studies demonstrate the feasibility of high-throughput, genome-wide studies of individual CHL cases and have already led to the identification of novel genomic alterations with the potential to explain aspects of CHL pathogenesis.
We further developed a pipeline to utilize the extracted DNA for high-throughput genomic studies. In order to achieve reliable results from as few as 1,000 sorted HRS cells (thhe minimum obtained from sequential cases), we further developed a modified next-generation DNA library construction procedure8 that allowed us to increase adaptor ligation efficiency and to generate DNA fragment libraries without excessive amplification. This method allows for the analysis of routine clinical samples and the detection of recurrent mutations and chromosomal alterations7.
1. Tissue Processing and Freezing
2. Preparing Cell Suspensions for Cell Sorting
NOTE: Each lot of antibody must be properly titered using 10 million cells in a 300- µΛ staining volume. Peripheral blood may be used for all antibodies except CD30, for which the KMH2 cell line spiked into peripheral blood may be used for titration10. We generally begin with the manufacturer-recommended volume of antibody and perform two two-fold dilutions and one two-fold increase (four data points) for each lot of antibody titration. For example, if the manufacturer recommends a 10-µL volume, we perform the titration using 2, 5, 10, and 20 µL volumes.
3. (Optional Protocol) T Cell Rosette Blocking
NOTE: HRS cells are rosetted by T cells in tissue sections and cell suspension, and these T cells may potentially contaminate the sorted HRS fraction. These interactions are mediated by CD54 and CD58 on the HRS cell binding to LFA-1 and CD2 on the T cells4,11. These interactions can be blocked with unlabeled antibodies to these adhesion molecules.
4. HRS-, B-, and T-cell Isolation Using Cell Sorting
NOTE: Although we used a special research order instrument using 5 lasers (see the Materials spreadsheet), any sorter with the capability of detecting the fluorochromes used in the antibody panel should be sufficient. The execution of the steps below requires a familiarity with software12 function and a basic knowledge of cell sorter operations. Please refer to the online software manual for detailed instructions.
5. DNA Extraction
6. Library Construction
7. Exome Hybridization
8. Multiplexed Sequencing
9. Analysis (Can be Substituted with Alternative Pipeline(s) if Desired)
A bioanalyzer plot should be taken after library amplification and 0.8x bead cleanup. One should see a "normal-like" distribution of fragment sizes in the desired range (Figure 2a). Deviations from this shape, such as a visible "shoulder" in the curve, indicate the presence of a high or low molecular weight artifact. For example, Figure 2b-2d shows examples of libraries containing visible artifact...
Future applications or directions after mastering this technique
This work allows for exome sequencing from samples containing at least 10 ng of DNA. In the clinical context, this limit excludes most fine-needle aspiration samples due to insufficient material, but it includes adequate core biopsies and excisional biopsy samples. This will enable the acquisition of data from a larger set of possible samples.
Critical steps within the protocol...
The authors have nothing to disclose.
The development of this project method was funded by the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine of Weill Cornell Medical College. We acknowledge the Tri-Institutional Training Program in Computational Biology and Medicine for partial funding. We would like to thank the scientists who shared their time and knowledge with us, especially Maryke Appel; Dan Burgess; Iwanka Kozarewa; Chad Locklear; and everyone from the Weill Cornell Medical College Genomics Core Facility, including Jenny Zhang, Xiaobo (Shawn) Liang, Dong Xu, Wei Zhang, Huimin Shang, Tatiana Batson, and Tuo Zhang.
Name | Company | Catalog Number | Comments |
Petri or Cell Culture Dish (sterile) | |||
RPMI-1640 Media | Roswell Park Memorial Institute | ||
Fetal Calf Serum (FCS), (heat inactivated) | |||
Freezing Media (RPMI, 20% FCS, 10% dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO))-make fresh and keep sterile | |||
RPMI with 2% FCS (make fresh or store for up to 1 month) | |||
scalpel with fresh blade | |||
10 ml syringe (no needle) | |||
Cryogenic vials | |||
50 ml conical centrifuge tubes, force | |||
Centrifuge | capable of handling 50 ml conical centrifuge tubes and providing 400g | ||
Hepes buffer(1M, cell culture grade) | |||
phosphate buffered saline (PBS) | |||
Pluoronic-F68 | Thermo-Fisher | 24040-032 | |
DNAase-I | Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO | D4527-10KU | store as 5mg/ml in RPMI in -200C |
Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) | |||
Sort Media (PBS+2%BSA+25mM HEPES+ Pluoronic –F68 (1X)) | |||
CD64-FITC (22) | Beckman Coulter, Miami, FL | 20 uL suggested starting volume; Titering is suggested | |
CD30-PE (BerH83) | BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA | 20 uL suggested starting volume; Titering is suggested | |
CD5-ECD (BL1a) | Beckman Coulter, Miami, FL | 10 uL suggested starting volume; Titering is suggested | |
CD40-PerCP-eFluor 710 (1C10) | Ebiosciences, San Diego, CA | 5 uL suggested starting volume; Titering is suggested | |
CD20-PC7 (B9E9) | Beckman Coulter, Miami, FL | 10 uL suggested starting volume; Titering is suggested | |
CD15-APC (HI98) | BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA | 20 uL suggested starting volume; Titering is suggested | |
CD45 APC-H7 (2D1) | BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA | Can be substituted with 10 uL suggested volume of CD45-Krome Orange (J.33, Beckman Coulter); Titering is suggested | |
CD95-Pacific Blue (DX2) | Life Technologies, Grand Island, NY | 5 uL suggested starting volume; Titering is suggested | |
CD2 (5 μg; clone RPA-2.10) | Biolegend, San Diego, CA | For optional protocol; Titering is suggested | |
CD54 (10 μg; clone 84H10) | Serotec, Oxford, United Kingdom | For optional protocol; Titering is suggested | |
CD58 (10 μg; clone TS2/9) | eBioscience, San Diego, CA | For optional protocol; Titering is suggested | |
LFA-1 (12 μg; clone MHM23) | Novus Biologicals, Littleton, CO | For optional protocol; Titering is suggested | |
BD CS&T Beads | BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA | ||
BD Accudrop Beads | BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA | ||
BC Versa Comp antibody capture beads | Beckman Coulter, Miami, FL | Compensation Beads | |
BD-FACS ARIA special research order instrument using 5 lasers | BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA | any BD-FACS aria with capabilities to detect the fluorochromes in the antibody panel should be sufficient | |
Wizard | Promega | A2360 | |
10 mM Tris-Cl buffer | NA | ||
Qubit dsDNA HS Assay kit | Life Technologies, Carlsbad, CA | ||
S2 Sonicator | Covaris, Woburn, MA | Alternatives may be substituted | |
microTUBE | Covaris, Woburn, MA | ||
Low-Throughput Library Preparation Kit | Kapa Biosystems, Wilmington, MA | KK8221 | |
Sybr Green | Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO | S9430 | |
Agencourt AMPure XP Beads | Beckman Coulter, Miami, FL | ||
Bioanalyzer | Agilent Technologies, Santa Clara, CA | ||
SeqCap EZ Exome v.3.0 | Roche Nimblegen | 6465684001 | |
HiSeq | Illumina | ||
TruSeq-style Universal adapter | Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT), Coralville, Iowa | HPLC purification; AATGATACGGCGACCACCGAGATCTACACTCTTTCCCTACACGACGCTCTTCCGAT*C*T | |
TruSeq-style index adapter | Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT), Coralville, Iowa | HPLC purification; /5Phos/GATCGGAAGAGCACACGTCTGAACTCCAGTCACNNNNNNATCTCGTATGCCGTCTTCTGCTTG | |
TruSeq-style PCR primer 1 | Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT), Coralville, Iowa | AATGATACGGCGACCACCGAGA | |
TruSeq-style PCR primer 2 | Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT), Coralville, Iowa | CAAGCAGAAGACGGCATACGAG | |
Nuclease Free Duplex Buffer | Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT), Coralville, Iowa | ||
BD FACSDIVA software | BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA | ||
BD Falcon Tubes | BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA | ||
BD Flow Tubes | BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA |
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