The Tasmanian Devil Transcriptome Reveals Schwann Cell Origins of a Clonally Transmissible Cancer

Author(s)
Murchison, Elizabeth P.; Tovar, Cesar; Hsu, Arthur; Bender, Hannah S.; Kheradpour, Pouya; ... Show more
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Abstract
The Tasmanian devil, a marsupial carnivore, is endangered because of the emergence of a transmissible cancer known as devil facial tumor disease (DFTD). This fatal cancer is clonally derived and is an allograft transmitted between devils by biting. We performed a large-scale genetic analysis of DFTD with microsatellite genotyping, a mitochondrial genome analysis, and deep sequencing of the DFTD transcriptome and microRNAs. These studies confirm that DFTD is a monophyletic clonally transmissible tumor and suggest that the disease is of Schwann cell origin. On the basis of these results, we have generated a diagnostic marker for DFTD and identify a suite of genes relevant to DFTD pathology and transmission. We provide a genomic data set for the Tasmanian devil that is applicable to cancer diagnosis, disease evolution, and conservation biology.
Date issued
2009-12
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/86961
Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory; Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Journal
Science
Publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Citation
Murchison, E. P., C. Tovar, A. Hsu, H. S. Bender, P. Kheradpour, C. A. Rebbeck, D. Obendorf, et al. “The Tasmanian Devil Transcriptome Reveals Schwann Cell Origins of a Clonally Transmissible Cancer.” Science 327, no. 5961 (January 1, 2010): 84–87.
Version: Author's final manuscript
ISSN
0036-8075
1095-9203
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