Investigating brain tumours using next-generation sequencing
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Using next generation sequencing to characterise human brain tumours and investigate disease progression and recurrence
IRAS ID
133224
Contact name
Lucy F. Stead
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Leeds
Research summary
The Walton Centre in Liverpool and the Royal Preston Hospital house ethically approved and HTA I licensed brain tumour research tissue banks. These banks contains surplus brain tumour tissue from both biopsies and tumour resections (removal). Matched (same patient) surplus blood samples are also stored. Patients have given their full consent for the use of all stored tissues for current and future research, including genetic research. Samples and data are anonymised before transfer to any researchers and the researchers do not have access to any identifiable data.
Brain tumour samples are also stored in a HTA-licensed multidisciplinary tissue bank at St James’s University Hospital in Leeds. These are fully anonymised samples with ethics approval granted for any type of research including that at the level of molecular genetic analyses (REC reference 10/H1306/7).We wish to use the above samples in a project aimed at characterising brain tumours at the genetic level (DNA and RNA), attempting to identify subclones (genetically distinct subpopulations of cells) and make comparisons between stages of disease progression (low grade to high grade tumours) and disease recurrence (regrowth of the tumour following treatment). The blood samples are required to ascertain how the tumour-specific DNA differs from that in non-diseased tissue, in an attempt to identify somatic mutations that may have caused the cancer. The main approach used in the project will be that of next-generation sequencing, in which DNA or RNA, extracted from the cells that constitute the sample, is sequenced on a high-throughout machine and analysed computationally to characterise biological phenomena occurring at the stage that the sample represents. Pilot studies will be conducted first, aimed at investigating whether previously unusable tissues (e.g. biopsy material and fixed tissues) can a) undergo flow cytometry to separate cells, and b) be inspected using these sequencing techniques.
REC name
South Central - Oxford A Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
13/SC/0509
Date of REC Opinion
2 Oct 2013
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion