Diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Patients who fail conventional therapy (~50%) have a poor prognosis and few treatment options. It is essential to understand the underlying biological processes, the progression of the disease, and utilize this information to develop new therapeutics. DLBCL patients with high C-MYC expression have a poor prognosis and new therapeutics for these patients are needed. This thesis describes work testing the hypothesis that JQ1, which can indirectly inhibit C-MYC in some tumors, can be used as an effective treatment for DLBCL. Some tumors have an unknown mechanism causing high C-MYC expression, leading me to investigate the underlying mechanisms. YY1 is a transcriptional regulator of c- Myc and has been implicated in DLBCL and as a potential regulator of the germinal center (GC) reaction. DLBCL arises from GC cells or post-GC cells. I tested the hypothesis that YY1 regulates the GC reaction. SMURF2 is an E3-ubiquitin ligase for YY1 and a tumor suppressor for DLBCL. I was interested in examining the mechanism underlying the suppression of DLBCL by SMURF2 leading to the hypothesis that SMURF2 regulates the GC. This thesis shows JQ1 leads to cell death and cellular senescence in human DLBCL cells. I conclude that BRD4 inhibition by JQ1 or derivatives could provide a new therapeutic avenue for DLBCL patients. I also show loss of YY1 perturbs the GC by decreasing the dark zone and increasing apoptosis. Finally I show modulation of SMURF2 does not affect the GC, suggesting SMURF2 utilizes a different mechanism to act as a tumor suppressor and may not modulate YY1 in the context of the GC.

Das weitaus häufigste aggressive Non-Hodgkin-Lymphom (NHL) ist mit 30-40% aller NHL das diffus großzellige B-Zell-Lymphom. Innerhalb zahlreicher Tumorentitäten, solide sowie hämatologisch, wurde bereits eine kleine Subpopulation von Tumorstammzellen identifiziert. Mit Hilfe des Farbstoffes Hoechst 33342 konnte mittels Durchflusszytometrie eine so genannte “Side Population” in allen 6 untersuchten Zelllinien von aggressiven NHL (BALM-3, Karpass 422, OCI-Ly1, OCI-Ly3, Ramos and SU-DHL-4) sowie in 8 von 11 untersuchten Primärmaterialien erkrankter Patienten nachgewiesen werden. Diese SP-Zellen wiesen ein erhöhtes Klonogenitätspotenzial und eine geringere Chemosuszeptibilität als die Non Side Population auf. Mischkulturen mit GFP-markierten Zellen ergaben Hinweise auf die Existenz eines dynamischen Systems, welches die Entstehung von SP- aus NSP-Zellen nahelegt. Auf molekulargenetischer Ebene ließ sich eine erhöhte ABCA3-Expressions detektieren, und mit Hilfe von Genanalysen konnten einige den SP-Phänotyp potenziell prägende Gene wie CD44,CXCL12 und JAG1 identifiziert werden.

bgbrady@hotmail.com / The primary intestinal follicular lymphoma is a rare disease described in the last classification of lymphomas from WHO. It is a localized disease with excellent prognosis. We describe in this article ,a 64 year-old Peruvian female with abdominal pain and delayed vomiting for the last two years, has undergone a partial intestinal resection due to bowel obstruction. There was a well-circumscribed annular tumor. A diagnosis of non-polypoid primary intestinal follicular lymphoma was made. We report the case and review the literature in this article. / El linfoma folicular primario intestinal es un desorden raro descrito en la última clasificación de linfomas de la WHO. Es una entidad localizada con excelente pronóstico. En el presente artículo, reportamos una mujer peruana de 64 años de edad diagnosticada con linfoma folicular primario intestinal. Ella tuvo dos años con dolor abdominal y vómitos tardíos. Ella desarrolló una obstrucción intestinal y tuvo una resección completa del tumor. Se describe el caso y se realiza una revisión de la literatura de esta entidad.

IL-6 is an inflammatory cytokine that contributes to the pathogenesis of many immunological diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, systemic lupus erythematosus, allergic asthma, as well as the protection against infections caused by various pathogens. These are linked to its role in regulating CD4 T cell differentiation and effector function. Most of these functions are dependent on the IL-6-mediated signaling through the transcription factor Stat3. In this thesis, we identify a novel molecular mechanism by which IL-6 regulates CD4 T cell effector function. We show that IL-6-dependent signal raises the levels of mitochondrial Ca2+ late during activation of CD4 T cells. This is further used to prolong the expression of effector cytokines IL-4 and IL-21. The modulation of mitochondrial Ca2+ is mediated by the regulation of mitochondrial Stat3 and the formation of respiratory supercomplexes. Thus, in addition to the canonical signaling of IL-6 through Stat3 as a transcription factor, IL-6 also modulates mitochondrial Stat3 to regulate mitochondrial function in CD4 T cells. This could be an alternative pathway by which IL-6 regulates effector function of CD4 T cells and it could contribute to the pathogenesis of inflammatory disease. Little is known about the effects of IL-6 on CD8 T cells. In this thesis, we reveal a paradigm-shifting mechanism by which IL-6 regulates antibody production by converting CD8 T cells into B cell helpers through IL-21. Briefly, IL-6 promotes the differentiation of a subset of naïve CD8 T cells into a unique population of effector CD8 T cells characterized by the production of high levels of IL-21. IL-21-producing CD8 T cells provide help to B cells to induce isotype switching and protective antibody production during infection. In summary, this thesis provides new insights into both mechanistic and functional aspects of IL-6 in regulating T cell function. These findings may shed light on the development of new therapeutic approaches in treating autoimmune disorders and preventing infectious diseases.

A família paraoxonase (PON1, PON2 e PON3) tem sido objeto de grande interesse por prevenir o estresse oxidativo e o processo inflamatório, condições importantes na carcinogênese. O Linfoma Difuso de Grandes Células B (LDGCB) consiste no subtipo histológico mais comum dentre os linfomas, doenças que se originam a partir das células do tecido linfoide e exibem distintos comportamentos clínicos, fatores patológicos e características epidemiológicas. Há escassez de dados sobre a atuação das paraoxonases na susceptibilidade diferencial ao risco de linfomas. Deste modo, o objetivo do presente estudo foi investigar a frequência alélica e genotípica dos polimorfismos 192QR e 55LM, no gene da PON1, e 148AG e 311SC, no gene da PON2 e o efeito desses polimorfismos sobre as atividades da enzima PON e perfil lipídico em 182 indivíduos (78 pacientes com LDGCB e 104 indivíduos saudáveis). O sangue foi coletado, em 4 momentos, para a determinação do perfil lipídico e das atividades arilesterase e paraoxonase da PON. O DNA foi extraído de leucócitos do sangue periférico pelo método de extração salina. A análise dos polimorfismos foi realizada por PCR/RFLP. Não houve diferença estatística na distribuição de genótipos e frequência de alelos dos polimorfismos nos genes da PON1 e PON2. A atividade sérica da arilesterase apresentou valores significativamente maiores apenas entre os indivíduos saudáveis (p=0,001). As variantes 55MM e 192QQ, do gene da PON1, influenciaram as atividades arilesterase (p=0,011) e paraoxonase (0,001). O polimorfismo PON2 311SS associou-se a atividade arilesterase (p=0,021). A concentração de autoanticorpos oxLDL foi alterada, pela presença do genótipo 55LM (p=0,037) nos indivíduos com LDGCB / The paraoxonase family (PON1, PON2 and PON3) have been the subject of great interest, since they are responsible for preventing oxidative stress and inflammation, conditions important in carcinogenesis. The Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common histological subtype among lymphomas, diseases that originate from cells of the lymphoid tissue and exhibit clinically distinct behaviors and pathological and epidemiological factors. There are paucity of data on the activity of paraoxonase in the differential susceptibility to the risk of lymphoma. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the genotypic and allelic frequency of polymorphisms 192QR and 55LM, in the PON1 gene and 148AG and 311SC, in the PON2 gene and the effect of these polymorphisms on PON enzyme activities and lipid profile in 182 subjects (78 patients with DLBCL and 104 healthy subjects). Blood was collected in four moments for the determination of lipid profile and paraoxonase and arylesterase activities of PON. The DNA was extracted from peripheral blood leukocytes by salt extraction method. The analysis of polymorphisms was performed by PCR/RFLP. There was no statistical difference in the distribution of genotypes and allele frequencies of polymorphisms in the PON1 and PON2 genes. The serum arylesterase activity was significantly higher only among healthy subjects (p=0.001). 192QQ and 55MM variants of the PON1 gene, influenced arylesterase (p=0.011) and paraoxonase (0.001) activities. The PON2 polymorphism was associated with 311SS arylesterase activity (p = 0.021). The concentration of oxLDL autoantibodies was altered by the presence of 55LM genotype (p = 0.037) in patients with DLBCL

Agamaglobulinemia ligada ao X (XLA) é uma imunodeficiência primária caracterizada por ausência ou número reduzido de células B maduras em sangue periférico, de todos os isotipos de imunoglobulina e um aumento da susceptibilidade a infecções bacterianas e enterovirais graves. XLA é causada por mutações no gene Bruton\'s tirosino quinase, que codifica um membro da proteína da família das tirosino quinases citoplasmáticas que tem papel vital na modulação de muitos processos celulares. Neste estudo foram analisados trinta e três pacientes quanto à presença de mutações de BTK, por SSCP/HA e seqüenciamento. A análise da expressão foi realizada pela técnica por PCR em tempo real. Foram encontradas mutações do tipo stop codons, substituições de aminoácido, defeitos de splicing, pequenas deleções/inserções e frameshift nestes pacientes afetando os domínios PH, SH3, SH2 e o domínio da quinase da proteína. A análise da expressão mostrou níveis baixos nos pacientes com mutação do tipo stop codon, e nas outras mutações, os níveis de expressão foram de aproximadamente 15% e se correlacionaram com os tipos de mutação. / X-linked Agammaglobulinemia (XLA) is a primary immunodeficiency characterized by the absence or decreased numbers of mature B cells in peripheral blood, and by a lack of all immunoglobulin isotypes, leading to an increased susceptibility to severe bacterial and enteroviral infections. XLA is caused by mutations in the gene encoding for Bruton\'s tyrosine kinase (BTK), a protein member of the Tec family of cytoplasmic tyrosine kinases and plays a vital modulation role in many cellular processes. In this study thirty-three patients were analyzed for the presence of BTK mutations by SSCP/HA and sequencing. The expression analysis was carried out by the technique of Real-Time PCR. It was found mutations of the stop codons type, amino acid substitutions, splice defects, small deletions/insertions and frameshift in these patients affecting the PH, SH3, SH2 and tyrosine kinase domains of protein. The expression levels were very low in the patients with stop codon mutations, and in the other mutations, the expression levels were about 15% and were correlated with the mutation types.

Leucemia Linfóide Crônica (LLC) é a leucemia mais comum em países ocidentais, tem apresentação clínica e evolução heterogênea. Especula-se que todos os casos sejam precedidos por Linfocitose B Monoclonal (LBM). Não são bem conhecidos os mecanismos moleculares responsáveis por esta evolução. Alterações na expressão de miRNAs e em comprimento telomérico podem contribuir para desencadear esta neoplasia. O objetivo deste estudo foi identificar diferenças em comprimento telomérico e expressão de miRNAs entre pacientes com LLC, portadores de LBM clínica e populacional e controles saudáveis. Estudamos 21 pacientes com LLC, 11 portadores de LBM clínica, 6 de LBM populacional e 10 voluntários saudáveis. Para o controle de comprimento telomérico, utilizamos dados de estudo anterior do nosso serviço com grupo de 261 voluntários saudáveis de 0 a 86 anos. Realizamos separação de células CD19+CD5+ por citometria de fluxo nos grupos de estudo e de linfócitos B no grupo controle. Analisamos expressão dos miRNAs 15a, 16-1, 29b, 34a, 155, 181a e 181b por RT-qPCR e comprimento telomérico por qPCR. O miR- 155 foi o único que demonstrou expressão diferente entre os grupos LLC e LBM, sendo maior nos pacientes com LLC. Este miRNA e o miR-34a têm aumento de expressão nas células com fenótipo anormal, apesar desta diferença não ter tido significância estatística quando considerada a expressão do miR-155 na LBM. Os miRNAs 15a, 16-1, 181a e 181b são hipoexpressos nas células com fenótipo anormal. O miR-29b teve expressão semelhante nos grupos estudados. O comprimento telomérico foi semelhante nos 3 grupos de estudo e menor quando comparados ao grupo controle. O miR-155 tem diferente expressão em LBM e LLC, podendo ser um dos responsáveis por esta evolução. Alterações nos miRNAs 34a, 15a, 16-1, 181a e 181b contribuem para expansão clonal de linfócitos B CD5+. O papel do miR-29b na fisiopatogênese e evolução da LLC ainda não está bem definido. O comprimento telomérico diminuído em LLC e LBM pode fazer parte dos eventos iniciais da fisiopatogênese desta leucemia. / Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) is the most common leukemia on Western countries, it has an heterogeneous clinical presentation and outcome. Monoclonal BCell Lymphocytosis (MBL) may precede all CLL cases. The molecular mechanisms responsible for this evolution are not known. Aberrant miRNA expression and telomere shortening may contribute for the pathophysiology of this disease. The objective of this study was to identify differences on telomere length and miRNA expression between CLL patients, subjects with clinical and population-screening MBL and healthy volunteers. 21 CLL patients, 11 subjects with clinical MBL, 6 with population-screening MBL and 10 healthy volunteers were enrolled on this study. As control for telomere length, we used a group of 261 healthy volunteers aged 0 to 86 years old that had been enrolled on a previous study from our group. After diagnosis confirmation, it has been done a flow citometry CD19+CD5+ cell sorting for the study groups and CD19+ cell sorting for the control group. The expression of the miRNAs 15a, 16-1, 29b, 34a, 155, 181a and 181b was determined by RT-qPCR. The telomere length was determined by qPCR. miR-155 was the only one with different expression between the CLL and MBL groups, presenting higher expression on the CLL group. This miRNA and the miR-34a are overexpressed on the study groups when compared to the control group, although this difference did not reach statistical significance when the miR-155 expression in MBL is considered. miRNAs 15a, 16-1, 181a and 181b are underexpressed on the study groups. The miR-29b was the only one with similar expression on all groups. The telomere length was similar on the 3 study groups and shorter on these groups when compared to normal subjects. The expression of miR-155 is different in CLL and MBL, it may contribute for this evolution. Aberrant expression of miR 34a, 15a, 16-1, 181a and 181b may contribute for the clonal expansion of CD5+ B lymphocytes. The role of miR-29b on the CLL pathogenesis and evolution is still not understood. The reduced telomere length on CLL and MBL may be part of the initial events of this leukemia pathogenesis.

Le rejet d’allogreffe représente un obstacle majeur en transplantation rénale humaine. Le lymphocyte B (LB) joue un rôle lors de cette réaction contre le greffon, mal défini à ce jour. Notre objectif a été de caractériser et identifier son implication dans le rejet humoral chronique (cABMR) et le rejet cellulaire aigu (ACR). Dans une première partie, la caractérisation phénotypique des LB par cytométrie en flux chez ces patients a mis en évidence d’importantes différences dans la distribution des sous-populations de LB uniquement chez les patients cABMR. Chez les patients ACR, dont la distribution des LB n’est pas altérée, l’analyse de coupes de biopsies rénales a permis de mettre en évidence un infiltrat cellulaire constitué de lymphocytes B et T. Dans une seconde partie, l’activité fonctionnelle et régulatrice des LB issus de patients cABMR et ACR a été évaluée à l’aide d’un modèle in vitro de coculture entre des LB et des LT. Cette étude a révélé que les LB, issus des patients cABMR uniquement, sont dépourvus d’activités régulatrices sur la fonction des LT autologues. Cette étude a aussi mis en exergue que les LB des patients cABMR présentaient une déficience dans la sécrétion de molécules immunosuppressives telles que le TGFβ et l’indoleamine 2,3-dioxygénase (IDO). Ce défaut conduit à une incapacité à générer des lymphocytes T régulateurs. Finalement, notre étude a clairement démontré le rôle du LB dans les mécanismes physiopathologiques conduisant au rejet. Ces travaux ont donc permis de générer d’éventuelles perspectives pour définir de nouvelles stratégies thérapeutiques dans la lutte contre le rejet d’allogreffe. / Allograft rejection is one of the main obstacles in human kidney transplantation. The role of B lymphocytes in the response against the allograft is poorly understood. Our aim is to identify and clarify its involvement in chronical humoral and cellular rejection. First of all, we identify profound changes in the distribution of B lymphocytes in cABMR patients which was not the case for ACR patients. In those last ones, we were able to detect on kidney biopsies an important cellular infiltrate composed with B and T cells. In the second part of this work, the functional and regulatory functions of B cells from both groups of patients were analyzed by using an in vitro coculture model between B and T cells. It appeared that B lymphocytes isolated from cABMR patients were unable to inhibit autologous T cell activity. This study showed those cells failed to produce immunosuppressive molecules as TGFβ and indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) leading to a default in the generation of regulatory T cells. To conclude, this study clearly showed the roles of B cells in physiopathological mechanisms of allograft rejection and helped to define new therapeutical strategies to prevent or reduce its consequences for the patients.

This study consists of two pieces of work investigating haematological malignancies; Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL) and Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL). Firstly, Pre-B ALL represents the most common paediatric malignancy and despite increasingly improved outcomes for patients, ~ 20% of all patients diagnosed with ALL relapse. Activating mutations in the RAS pathway are common (~50%) and result in hyperactivation of the MAPK pathway. I identified Erk negative feedback control via DUSP6 to be crucial for NRASG12D-mediated pre-B cell transformation and investigated its potential as a therapeutic target. I showed that a small molecule inhibitor of DUSP6 (BCI) selectively induced cell death in patient-derived pre-B ALL cells; with a higher sensitivity observed in relapse pre-B ALL. I also discovered that a high level of Erk activity is required for proliferation of normal pre-B cells, but dispensable in leukemic pre-B ALL cells. In addition, I found that human B cell malignancies can be grouped into three categories that fundamentally differ in their ability to control Erk signalling strength. Secondly, DLBCL is the most common haematological malignancy and although potentially curable with chemotherapy, 40% of patients still succumb from their disease. Recent exome sequencing studies have identified hundreds of genetic alterations but, for most, their contribution to disease, or their importance as therapeutic targets, remains uncertain. I optimised a novel approach to screen the functional importance of these mutations. This was achieved by reconstituting non-malignant, primary, human germinal centre B cells (GC B cells) with combinations of wildtype and mutant genes to recapitulate the genetic events of DLBCL. When injected into immunodeficient mice, these oncogene-transduced GC B cells gave rise to tumours that closely resemble human DLBCL, reinforcing the biological relevance of this system. To screen potential tumour suppressor mutations in this system in a high throughput fashion, I developed a lymphoma-focused CRISPR library of 692 genes recurrently altered in B cell lymphomas. These experiments identified GNA13 as an unexpectedly potent tumour suppressor in human GC B cells and provided new understanding to its mechanism of action. These findings provide novel understanding of the complexity of oncogenic mechanisms in human B cell malignancies.

B lymphopoiesis requires a network of transcription factors that orchestrate changes in gene expression amidst immunoglobulin gene rearrangement and periods of cell proliferation. Although proteins required for the function of this network have been identified, the precise mechanisms that coordinate these processes as hematopoietic progenitors differentiate into lineage-committed B cells remain unclear. Justy mice display a profound arrest of B cell development at the time of lineage commitment due to a point mutation that decreases expression of the protein Gon4-like. Previous studies suggested that Gon4-like functions to coordinate gene expression and cell division to determine cell fate, but the role of Gon4-like in B lymphopoiesis is largely unknown. Here we demonstrate that Gon4-like is required to regulate gene expression and cell cycle progression in B cell progenitors. Expression of genes required for B cell development is intact in Justy B cell progenitors, yet these cells fail to repress genes that promote the development of alternative lineages. In addition, Justy B cell progenitors are unable to upregulate genes that instruct cell cycle progression. Consistent with this, B cell progenitors from Justy mice show signs of impaired proliferation and undergo apoptosis despite containing elevated levels of activated STAT5, a transcription factor that promotes cell proliferation and survival. Genetic ablation of p53 or retroviral-mediated overexpression of pro-survival factors failed to rescue these defects. In contrast, overexpression of proteins that promote the G1/S transition of the cell cycle, including D-type cyclins, E2F2 and cyclin E, rescued pro-B cell development from Justy progenitors, an effect that was not observed upon overexpression of proteins that function during the S and G2M phases of the cell cycle. Further, overexpression of cyclin D3 led to partial restoration of gene repression in Justy pro-B cells. Notably, Gon4-like interacted with STAT5 when overexpressed in transformed cells, suggesting Gon4-like and STAT5 function together to activate expression of STAT5 target genes. Collectively, our data indicate that Gon4-like is required to coordinate gene repression and cell cycle progression during B lymphopoiesis.