Paul P Eijk

VU medisch centrum, Amsterdam, North Holland, Netherlands

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Publications (9)37.99 Total impact

  • Article: Detection limits of DNA copy number alterations in heterogeneous cell populations.
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    ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Array Comparative Genomic Hybridization (aCGH) is a widely used technique to assess chromosomal copy number alterations. Chromosomal content, however, is often not uniform throughout cell populations. Here we evaluated to what extent aCGH can detect DNA copy number alterations in heterogeneous cell populations. A systematic evaluation is currently lacking, despite its importance in diagnostics and research. The detection limits reported are a compound of analytical software and laboratory techniques and do not account for the number of probes in relation to sample homogeneity. METHODS: Detection limits were explored with DNA isolated from a patient with intellectual disability (ID) and from tumor cell line BT474. Both were diluted with increasing amounts of normal DNA to simulate different levels of cellularity. Samples were hybridized on microarrays containing 180,880 oligonucleotides evenly distributed over the genome (spacing ~17 kb). RESULTS: Single copy number alterations, represented by down to 249 probes (4 Mb) and present in 10 % of a cell population, could be detected. Alterations encompassing as few as 14 probes (~238 Kb) could also be detected, but for this a 35 % mosaic level was required. CONCLUSIONS: DNA copy number alterations can be detected in cell populations containing 10 % abnormal cells. Detection of sub-megabase alterations requires a higher percentage of abnormal cells or microarrays with a higher probe density.
    Cellular oncology (Dordrecht). 11/2012;
  • Article: An 82-year-old woman with small-cell lung cancer: relapse after 9 years or a new primary?
    Journal of thoracic oncology: official publication of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer 08/2012; 7(8):e3-5. · 4.55 Impact Factor
  • Article: CGH arrays compared for DNA isolated from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded material.
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    ABSTRACT: Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) archival tissue is an important source of DNA material. The most commonly used technique to identify copy number aberrations from chromosomal DNA in tumorigenesis is array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH). Although copy number analysis using DNA from FFPE archival tissue is challenging, several research groups have reported high quality and reproducible DNA copy number results using aCGH. Aim of this study is to compare the commercially available aCGH platforms suitable for high-resolution copy number analysis using FFPE-derived DNA. Two dual channel aCGH platforms (Agilent and NimbleGen) and a single channel SNP-based platform (Affymetrix) were evaluated using seven FFPE colon cancer samples, and median absolute deviation (MAD), deflection, signal-to-noise ratio, and DNA input requirements were used as quality criteria. Large differences were observed between platforms; Agilent and NimbleGen showed better MAD values (0.13 for both) compared with Affymetrix (0.22). On the contrary, Affymetrix showed a better deflection of 0.94, followed by 0.71 for Agilent and 0.51 for NimbleGen. This resulted in signal-to-nose ratios that were comparable between the three commercially available platforms. Interestingly, DNA input amounts from FFPE material lower than recommended still yielded high quality profiles on all platforms. Copy number analysis using DNA derived from FFPE archival material is feasible using all three high-resolution copy number platforms and shows reproducible results, also with DNA input amounts lower than recommended.
    Genes Chromosomes and Cancer 12/2011; 51(4):344-52. · 3.31 Impact Factor
  • Article: Trifluorothymidine resistance is associated with decreased thymidine kinase and equilibrative nucleoside transporter expression or increased secretory phospholipase A2.
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    ABSTRACT: Trifluorothymidine (TFT) is part of the novel oral formulation TAS-102, which is currently evaluated in phase II studies. Drug resistance is an important limitation of cancer therapy. The aim of the present study was to induce resistance to TFT in H630 colon cancer cells using two different schedules and to analyze the resistance mechanism. Cells were exposed either continuously or intermittently to TFT, resulting in H630-cTFT and H630-4TFT, respectively. Cells were analyzed for cross-resistance, cell cycle, protein expression, and activity of thymidine phosphorylase (TP), thymidine kinase (TK), thymidylate synthase (TS), equilibrative nucleoside transporter (hENT), gene expression (microarray), and genomic alterations. Both cell lines were cross-resistant to 2'-deoxy-5-fluorouridine (>170-fold). Exposure to IC(75)-TFT increased the S/G(2)-M phase of H630 cells, whereas in the resistant variants, no change was observed. The two main target enzymes TS and TP remained unchanged in both TFT-resistant variants. In H630-4TFT cells, TK protein expression and activity were decreased, resulting in less activated TFT and was most likely the mechanism of TFT resistance. In H630-cTFT cells, hENT mRNA expression was decreased 2- to 3-fold, resulting in a 5- to 10-fold decreased TFT-nucleotide accumulation. Surprisingly, microarray-mRNA analysis revealed a strong increase of secretory phospholipase-A2 (sPLA2; 47-fold), which was also found by reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR; 211-fold). sPLA2 inhibition reversed TFT resistance partially. H630-cTFT had many chromosomal aberrations, but the exact role of sPLA2 in TFT resistance remains unclear. Altogether, resistance induction to TFT can lead to different mechanisms of resistance, including decreased TK protein expression and enzyme activity, decreased hENT expression, as well as (phospho)lipid metabolism. Mol Cancer Ther; 9(4); 1047-57. (c)2010 AACR.
    Molecular Cancer Therapeutics 04/2010; 9(4):1047-57. · 5.23 Impact Factor
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    Article: Anti-proliferative action of vitamin D in MCF7 is still active after siRNA-VDR knock-down
    BMC Genomics 10/2009; · 4.07 Impact Factor
  • Article: Genomic profiles associated with early micrometastasis in lung cancer: relevance of 4q deletion.
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    ABSTRACT: Bone marrow is a common homing organ for early disseminated tumor cells (DTC) and their presence can predict the subsequent occurrence of overt metastasis and survival in lung cancer. It is still unclear whether the shedding of DTC from the primary tumor is a random process or a selective release driven by a specific genomic pattern. DTCs were identified in bone marrow from lung cancer patients by an immunocytochemical cytokeratin assay. Genomic aberrations and expression profiles of the respective primary tumors were assessed by microarrays and fluorescence in situ hybridization analyses. The most significant results were validated on an independent set of primary lung tumors and brain metastases. Combination of DNA copy number profiles (array comparative genomic hybridization) with gene expression profiles identified five chromosomal regions differentiating bone marrow-negative from bone marrow-positive patients (4q12-q32, 10p12-p11, 10q21-q22, 17q21, and 20q11-q13). Copy number changes of 4q12-q32 were the most prominent finding, containing the highest number of differentially expressed genes irrespective of chromosomal size (P=0.018). Fluorescence in situ hybridization analyses on further primary lung tumor samples confirmed the association between loss of 4q and bone marrow-positive status. In bone marrow-positive patients, 4q was frequently lost (37% versus 7%), whereas gains could be commonly found among bone marrow-negative patients (7% versus 17%). The same loss was also found to be common in brain metastases from both small and non-small cell lung cancer patients (39%). Thus, our data indicate, for the first time, that early hematogenous dissemination of tumor cells might be driven by a specific pattern of genomic changes.
    Clinical Cancer Research 03/2009; 15(5):1566-74. · 7.74 Impact Factor
  • Article: In vivo induction of resistance to gemcitabine results in increased expression of ribonucleotide reductase subunit M1 as the major determinant.
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    ABSTRACT: Gemcitabine is a deoxycytidine (dCyd) analogue with activity against several solid cancers. Gemcitabine is activated by dCyd kinase (dCK) and interferes, as its triphosphate dFdCTP, with tumor growth through incorporation into DNA. Alternatively, the metabolite gemcitabine diphosphate (dFdCDP) can interfere with DNA synthesis and thus tumor growth through inhibition of ribonucleotide reductase. Gemcitabine can be inactivated by the enzyme dCyd deaminase (dCDA). In most in vitro models, resistance to gemcitabine was associated with a decreased dCK activity. In all these models, resistance was established using continuous exposure to gemcitabine with increasing concentrations; however, these in vitro models have limited clinical relevance. To develop in vivo resistance to gemcitabine, we treated mice bearing a moderately sensitive tumor Colon 26-A (T/C = 0.25) with a clinically relevant schedule (120 mg/kg every 3 days). By repeated transplant of the most resistant tumor and continuation of gemcitabine treatment for >1 year, the completely resistant tumor Colon 26-G (T/C = 0.96) was created. Initial studies focused on resistance mechanisms known from in vitro studies. In Colon 26-G, dCK activity was 1.7-fold decreased; dCDA and DNA polymerase were not changed; and Colon 26-G accumulated 1.5-fold less dFdCTP, 6 hours after a gemcitabine injection, than the parental tumor. Based on in vitro studies, these relative minor changes were considered insufficient to explain the completely resistant phenotype. Therefore, an expression microarray was done with Colon 26-A versus Colon 26-G. Using independently grown nonresistant and resistant tumors, a striking increase in expression of the RRM1 subunit gene was found in Colon 26-G. The expression of RRM1 mRNA was 25-fold increased in the resistant tumor, as measured by real-time PCR, which was confirmed by Western blotting. In contrast, RRM2 mRNA was 2-fold decreased. However, ribonucleotide reductase enzyme activity was only moderately increased in Colon 26-G. In conclusion, this is the first model with in vivo induced resistance to gemcitabine. In contrast to most in vitro studies, dCK activity was not the most important determinant of gemcitabine resistance. Expression microarray identified RRM1 as the gene with the highest increase in expression in the Colon 26-G, which might clarify its complete gemcitabine-resistant phenotype. This study is the first in vivo evidence for a key role for RRM1 in acquired gemcitabine resistance.
    Cancer Research 11/2005; 65(20):9510-6. · 7.86 Impact Factor
  • Article: Microarray analysis reveals pivotal divergent mRNA expression profiles early in the development of either compensated ventricular hypertrophy or heart failure.
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    ABSTRACT: Myocardial right ventricular (RV) hypertrophy due to pulmonary hypertension is aimed at normalizing ventricular wall stress. Depending on the degree of pressure overload, RV hypertrophy may progress to a state of impaired contractile function and heart failure, but this cannot be discerned during the early stages of ventricular remodeling. We tested whether critical differences in gene expression profiles exist between ventricles before the ultimate development of either a compensated or decompensated hypertrophic phenotype. Both phenotypes were selectively induced in Wistar rats by a single subcutaneous injection of either a low or a high dose of the pyrrolizidine alkaloid monocrotaline (MCT). Spotted oligonucleotide microarrays were used to investigate pressure-dependent cardiac gene expression profiles at 2 wk after the MCT injections, between control rats and rats that would ultimately develop either compensated or decompensated hypertrophy. Clustering of significantly regulated genes revealed specific expression profiles for each group, although the degree of hypertrophy was still similar in both. The ventricles destined to progress to failure showed activation of pro-apoptotic pathways, particularly related to mitochondria, whereas the group developing compensated hypertrophy showed blocked pro-death effector signaling via p38-MAPK, through upregulation of MAPK phosphatase-1. In summary, we show that, already at an early time point, pivotal differences in gene expression exist between ventricles that will ultimately develop either a compensated or a decompensated phenotype, depending on the degree of pressure overload. These data reveal genes that may provide markers for the early prediction of clinical outcome as well as potential targets for early intervention.
    Physiological Genomics 06/2005; 21(3):314-23. · 2.73 Impact Factor
  • Article: Assessment of Chlamydia trachomatis infection of semen specimens by ligase chain reaction.
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    ABSTRACT: Diagnostic potential of the Chlamydia trachomatis ligase chain reaction system (LCx) to assess the presence of C. trachomatis in urine and semen specimens was evaluated. Paired urine and semen specimens from 153 asymptomatic male partners of subfertile couples attending our Center for Reproductive Medicine were examined by LCx. As controls, 19 semen samples from four donors who were participating in the programme for artificial insemination were used. Of these, 12 samples had previously been shown to be C. trachomatis-positive by an in-house PCR. C. trachomatis was detected by LCx in seven of 153 (5 %) urine samples. None of the 153 semen samples tested positive by LCx. Also, none of the 12 C. trachomatis-containing control semen samples were positive by LCx. By in-house PCR, seven urine specimens and two of 153 (1 %) semen samples tested positive. The corresponding urine samples of these male partners were also C. trachomatis-positive, as well as the 12 C. trachomatis-containing samples from donors. In conclusion, LCx is not sensitive enough to assess the presence of C. trachomatis in semen specimens; therefore, this method is not recommended to routinely screen semen specimens from donors who participate in programmes for artificial insemination or male partners of subfertile couples for C. trachomatis.
    Journal of Medical Microbiology 10/2003; 52(Pt 9):777-9. · 2.50 Impact Factor