Published in

Nature Research, Nature Genetics, 6(45), p. 592-601, 2013

DOI: 10.1038/ng.2628

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Proteomic and bioinformatic analysis of mammalian SWI/SNF complexes identifies extensive roles in human malignancy

This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Abstract

Subunits of mammalian SWI/SNF (mSWI/SNF, also called BAF) complexes have recently been implicated as tumor suppressors in a number of human malignancies. To understand the full extent of their involvement, we conducted a proteomic analysis of purified endogenous mSWI/SNF complexes. Our studies revealed several new dedicated, stable subunits not found in the yeast SWI/SNF complex including Bcl7a, b and c, Bcl11a and b, Brd9 and SS18. Incorporating these novel members, we determined the frequency of mSWI/SNF subunit mutations in recent exome- and whole-genome sequencing studies of primary human tumors. Surprisingly, mSWI/SNF subunits are mutated in 19.6% of all human tumors reported in 44 exome sequencing studies. Our analysis suggests that specific subunits protect against cancer in specific tissues. In addition, we find that mutations to more than one subunit, which we define as a type of compound heterozygosity, are prevalent in certain cancers. Our studies demonstrate that mSWI/SNF is the most frequently mutated chromatin-regulatory complex (CRC) in human cancer and that in contrast to other known tumor suppressors and oncogenes surveyed, mSWI/SNF is broadly mutated, similar to TP53. Thus, proper functioning of these polymorphic chromatin regulatory complexes may constitute a major mechanism of human tumor suppression.