U.S. patent application number 12/427111 was filed with the patent office on 2010-01-07 for single copy genomic hybridization probes and methods of generating same.
This patent application is currently assigned to The Children's Mercy Hospital. Invention is credited to Joan H. M. Knoll, Peter K. Rogan.
Application Number | 20100003684 12/427111 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 29584761 |
Filed Date | 2010-01-07 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100003684 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Knoll; Joan H. M. ; et
al. |
January 7, 2010 |
SINGLE COPY GENOMIC HYBRIDIZATION PROBES AND METHODS OF GENERATING
SAME
Abstract
Nucleic acid (e.g., DNA) hybridization probes are described
which comprise a labeled, single copy nucleic acid which hybridizes
to a deduced single copy sequence interval in target nucleic acid
of known sequence. The probes, which are essentially free of
repetitive sequences, can be used in hybridization analyses without
adding repetitive sequence-blocking nucleic acids. This allows
rapid and accurate detection of chromosomal abnormalities. The
probes are preferably designed by first determining the sequence of
at least one single copy interval in a target nucleic acid
sequence, and developing corresponding hybridization probes which
hybridize to at least a part of the deduced single copy sequence.
In practice, the sequences of the target and of known genomic
repetitive sequence representatives are compared in order to deduce
locations of the single copy sequence intervals. The single copy
probes can be developed by any variety of methods, such as PCR
amplification, restriction or exonuclease digestion of purified
genomic fragments, or direct synthesis of DNA sequences. This is
followed by labeling of the probes and hybridization to a target
sequence.
Inventors: |
Knoll; Joan H. M.; (London,
CA) ; Rogan; Peter K.; (London, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
POLSINELLI SHUGHART PC
700 W. 47TH STREET, SUITE 1000
KANSAS CITY
MO
64112-1802
US
|
Assignee: |
The Children's Mercy
Hospital
Kansas City
MO
|
Family ID: |
29584761 |
Appl. No.: |
12/427111 |
Filed: |
April 21, 2009 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10786970 |
Feb 24, 2004 |
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12427111 |
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09573080 |
May 16, 2000 |
6828097 |
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10786970 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
435/6.11 ;
536/24.31; 536/25.3 |
Current CPC
Class: |
C12Q 1/6841 20130101;
C12Q 2600/156 20130101; C12Q 1/6876 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
435/6 ;
536/24.31; 536/25.3 |
International
Class: |
C12Q 1/68 20060101
C12Q001/68; C07H 21/04 20060101 C07H021/04 |
Claims
1. A nucleic acid hybridization probe which will hybridize to a
nonrepetitive portion of target nucleic acid, said probe comprising
a labeled, single copy human nucleic acid sequence of known
sequence, said probe having a length of at least about 2000
nucleotides, said probe being free of the repeat sequences
identified as SEQ ID Nos. 1-428 and 447-479 and subsequences
thereof, said subsequences containing at least 17 nucleotides, at
least a portion of the human nucleic acid sequence being derived
either from an intron or an intergenic region wherein an intergenic
region begins either upstream of the transcription initiation site
or downstream of the polyadenylation site, and said probe being
complementary to a non-repetitive portion of the target.
2. The probe of claim 1, said human nucleic acid sequence being
human genomic DNA.
3. The probe of claim 2, said human genomic DNA being derived
directly from PCR amplification of human genomic DNA.
4. The probe of claim 1, said human nucleic acid sequence being
single stranded.
5. A modified human DNA sequence isolated from its natural
environment which will hybridize to a portion of target human DNA,
said sequence comprising a single copy human DNA sequence of known
sequence having a length of at least about 2000 nucleotides and
being free of the repeat sequences identified as SEQ ID Nos. 1-428,
447-479, and subsequences thereof, said subsequences containing at
least 17 nucleotides, at least a portion of the human nucleic acid
sequence being derived from an intron or an intergenic region
wherein an intergenic region begins either upstream of the
transcription initiation site or downstream of the polyadenylation
site, and said probe being complementary to a non-repetitive
portion of the target.
6. The human DNA sequence of claim 5, said human DNA sequence being
single stranded.
7. A hybridization method including the steps of contacting a
target nucleic acid sequence with a probe in accordance with claim
1 under conditions permitting the probe to hybridize to at least a
portion of said target nucleic acid sequence.
8. A hybridization method including the steps of annealing a target
human DNA sequence to a single copy human DNA sequence in
accordance with claim 5 under conditions permitting the single copy
human DNA sequence to hybridize to at least a portion of said
target human DNA sequence.
9. A method of developing a hybridization probe for a target
nucleic acid sequence, said method comprising the steps of:
determining the sequence of at least one single copy sequence in
said target nucleic acid sequence computationally, said determining
step comprising the steps of ascertaining the
nucleotide-by-nucleotide sequence of said target nucleic acid
sequence, comparing said ascertained sequences with the sequences
of known repeat sequences in said target nucleic acid sequence, and
identifying said single copy sequence from said comparison, said
known repeat sequences appearing at least 10 times in the genome
and having at least about 50 nucleotides; and developing a
hybridization probe comprising a sequence complementary to a
non-repetitive portion of the target which hybridizes to at least a
part of said identified single copy sequence.
10. A method of identifying a single copy sequence interval from a
target nucleic acid sequence computationally, said method
comprising the steps of ascertaining the nucleotide-by-nucleotide
sequence of said target nucleic acid sequence, comparing said
ascertained sequences with the sequences of known repeat sequences
in said target nucleic acid sequence, said known repeat sequences
appearing at least 10 times in the genome and having at least about
50 nucleotides, and identifying said single copy sequence from said
comparison.
11. A modified human DNA sequence which will hybridize to a portion
of target human DNA, said sequence comprising a single copy human
DNA sequence of known sequence having a length of at least about
2000 nucleotides and being free of the repeat sequences identified
as SEQ ID Nos. 1-428, 447-479, and subsequences thereof, said
subsequences containing at least 17 nucleotides, at least a portion
of the human nucleic acid sequence being derived from an intron or
an intergenic region wherein an intergenic region begins either
upstream of the transcription initiation site or downstream of the
polyadenylation site, said human DNA sequence being modified so
that it is detectable, and said probe being complementary to a
non-repetitive portion of the target.
12. A nucleic acid hybridization probe comprising a labeled, human
nucleic acid sequence having a length of at least about 2000
nucleotides and being free of SEQ ID Nos. 1-428 and 447-479 and 17
mer subsequences thereof, said probe being complementary to and
hybridizable with a nonrepetitive portion of target human DNA, said
target human DNA comprising the known sequence of the human genome,
at least a portion of the human nucleic acid sequence being derived
either from an intron or an intergenic region wherein an intergenic
region begins either upstream of the transcription initiation site
or downstream of the polyadenylation site, and said probe being
complementary to a non-repetitive portion of the target.
Description
RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is a continuation of application Ser. No.
10/786,970, filed Feb. 24, 2004, which is a continuation of
application Ser. No. 09/573,080, filed May 16, 2000, now U.S. Pat.
No. 6,828,097 issued Dec. 7, 2004. The teachings and contents of
all of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
SEQUENCE LISTING
[0002] The sequence listing for this application is identical to
the sequence listing that was accepted for application Ser. No.
09/573,080, filed May 16, 2000. Use of this compliance sequence
listing for the present application is respectfully requested. The
computer readable copy submitted for this application is identical
to the previously accepted readable copy.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] 1. Field of the Invention
[0004] The present invention is broadly concerned with a method for
designing single copy hybridization probes useful in the fields of
cytogenetics and molecular genetics for determining the presence of
specific nucleic acid sequences in a sample of eukaryotic origin,
e.g., the probes may be used to analyze specific chromosomal
locations by in situ hybridization as a detection of acquired or
inherited genetic diseases. More particularly, the invention
pertains to such probes, hybridization methods of use thereof and
techniques for developing the probes, where the probes are
essentially free of genomic repeat sequences, thereby eliminating
the need for disabling of repetitive sequences which is required
with conventional probes.
[0005] 2. Description of the Prior Art
[0006] Chromosome abnormalities are associated with various genetic
disorders, which may be inherited or acquired. These abnormalities
are of three general types, extra or missing individual chromosomes
(aneuploidy), extra or missing portions of chromosomes (including
deletions, duplications, supernumerary and marker chromosomes), or
chromosomal rearrangements. The latter category includes
translocations (transfer of a piece from one chromosome onto
another chromosome), inversions (reversal in polarity of a
chromosomal segment), insertions (transfer of a piece from one
chromosome into another chromosome) and isochromosomes (chromosome
arms derived from identical chromosomal segments). The
abnormalities may be present only in a subset of cells (mosaicism),
or in all cells. Inherited or constitutional abnormalities of
various types occur with a frequency of about one in every 250
human births, with results which may be essentially benign, serious
or even lethal. Chromosomal abnormalities are common and often
diagnostic in acquired disorders such as leukemia and other
cancers.
[0007] Hybridization probes have been developed in the past for
chromosome analysis and diagnosis of abnormalities. The probes
comprise cloned or amplified genomic sequences or cDNA. For
example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,447,841, 5,663,319 and 5,756,696 describe
hybridization probes in the form of labeled nucleic acids which are
complementary to nucleic acid segments within target chromosomal
DNA. However, these probes contain repetitive sequences and
therefore must be used in conjunction with blocking nucleic acids
which are substantially complementary to repetitive sequences in
the labeled probes. That is, these prior art probes are either
pre-reacted with the blocking nucleic acids so as to bind and block
the repetitive sequences therein, or such blocking nucleic acids
are present in the hybridization reaction mixture. If the
repetitive sequences in the probes are not disabled in some manner,
the probes will react with the multiple locations in the target
chromosomal DNA where the repetitive sequences reside and will not
specifically react with the single copy target sequences. This
problem is particularly acute with interspersed repeat sequences
which are widely scattered throughout the genome, but also is
present with tandem repeats clustered or contiguous on the DNA
molecule. The requirement for repeat sequence disabilization by
using complementary blocking nucleic acids reduces the sensitivity
of the existing probes. Reliable, easily detectable signals require
DNA probes of from about 40-100 kb.
[0008] The prior art also teaches that cloned probes presumed to
contain single copy sequences can be identified based on their lack
of hybridization to radiolabeled total genomic DNA. In these other
studies, hybridization is first performed with probes that contain
pools of clones in which each recombinant DNA clone has been
individually selected so that it hybridizes to single-copy
sequences or very low copy repetitive sequences. A prerequisite
step in this prior art is to identify single copy sequences by
experimental hybridization of labeled genomic DNA to a candidate
DNA probe by Southern or dot-blot hybridization. Positive
hybridization with labeled total genomic DNA usually indicates that
the candidate DNA probe contains a repetitive sequence and
eliminates it from consideration as a single copy probe.
Furthermore, an experimental hybridization of a DNA probe with
total genomic DNA may fail to reveal the presence of multicopy
repetitive sequences that are not abundant (<100 copies) or are
infrequent in the genome. Such sequences represent a small fraction
of the labeled genomic DNA and the signal they contribute will be
below the limits of detection.
[0009] It has also been suggested to physically remove repeat
sequences from probes by experimental procedures (Craig et al.,
Hum. Genet., 100:472-476 (1997); Durm et al., Biotech., 24:820-825
(1998)). This procedure involves prehybridizing a polymerase chain
reaction (PCR)-amplified genomic probe with an excess of purified
repetitive sequence DNA prior to applying the probe to the DNA
target. The resulting purified probe is depleted of repetitive
sequences. This procedure is in principle very similar to other
procedures that disable the hybridization of repetitive sequences
in probes, but the technique is time-consuming and does not provide
any advantages over the probes described in U.S. Pat. Nos.
5,447,841 and 5,756,696.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0010] The present invention overcomes the problem outlined above
and provides nucleic acid (e.g., DNA) hybridization probes
comprising a labeled, single copy nucleic acid which hybridizes
with a deduced single copy sequence interval in target nucleic acid
of known sequence. Generally speaking, the probes of the invention
are designed by comparing the sequence of a target nucleic acid
with known repeat sequences in the genome of which the target is a
part; with this information it is possible to deduce the single
copy sequences within the target (i.e., those sequences which are
essentially free of repeat sequences which, due to the lack of
specificity, can mask the hybridization signal of the single copy
sequences). As can be appreciated, these initial steps require
knowledge of the sequences both of the target and genomic repeats,
information which is increasingly available owing to the Human
Genome Project and related bioinformatic studies. Furthermore,
readily available computer software is used to derive the necessary
single copy sequences.
[0011] The probes hereof are most preferably complementary to the
target sequence, i.e., there is a 100% complementary match between
the probe nucleotides and the target sequence. More broadly, less
than 100% correspondence probes can be used, so long as the probes
adequately hybridize to the target sequence, i.e., there should be
at least about 80% sequence identity between the probe and a
sequence which is a complement to target sequences, more preferably
at least about 90% sequence identity.
[0012] Nucleic acid fragments corresponding to the deduced single
copy sequences can be generated by a variety of methods, such as
PCR amplification, restriction or exonuclease digestion of purified
genomic fragments, or direct nucleic acid synthesis. The single
copy fragments are then purified to remove any potentially
contaminating repeat sequences, such as, for example, by
electrophoresis or denaturing high pressure liquid chromatography;
this is highly desirable because it eliminates spurious
hybridization and detection of unrelated genomic sequences.
[0013] The probe fragments may then be cloned into a recombinant
DNA vector or directly labeled. The probe is preferably labeled by
nick translation using a modified or directly labeled nucleotide.
The labeled probe is then denatured and hybridized, preferably to
fixed chromosomal preparations on microscope slides or alternately
to purified nucleic acid immobilized on a filter, slide, DNA chip,
or other substrate. The probes can then be hybridized to
chromosomes according to conventional fluorescence in situ
hybridization (FISH) methods such as those described in U.S. Pat.
No. 5,985,549 or 5,447,841; alternately, they can be hybridized to
immobilized nucleic acids according to the techniques described in
U.S. Pat. No. 5,110,920 or 5,273,881. Probe signals may be
visualized by any of a variety of methods, such as those employing
fluorescent, immunological or enzymatic detection reagents.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] The patent or application file contains at least one drawing
executed in color. Copies of this patent or patent application
publication with color drawings will be provided by the Office upon
request and payment of the necessary fee.
[0015] FIGS. 1-12 are respective CCD camera images of FISH
experiments wherein various gene-specific digoxigenin-dUTP labeled
probes were hybridized on metaphase cells and detected with
rhodamine conjugated antibody to digoxigenin and where the
chromosomes were counterstained with 4,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole
(DAPI). Chromosomes with one or both chromatids hybridized are
indicated by arrows whereas a star indicates the absence of
normally expected hybridizations. In particular,
[0016] FIG. 1 illustrates hybridization results using the 5170 bp
HIRA probe described in Example 1, and wherein the probe was
reacted with purified repetitive DNA sequences;
[0017] FIG. 2 illustrates a comparative hybridization identical to
that depicted in FIG. 1, using the same 5170 bp HIRA probe but
without pre-reaction with purified repetitive DNA sequences;
[0018] FIG. 3 illustrates hybridization results using the 3544 bp
15q11-q13 probe pre-reacted with purified repetitive DNA;
[0019] FIG. 4 illustrates results in a comparative experiment using
the 3544 bp 15q11-q13 probe without pre-reaction with purified
repetitive DNA;
[0020] FIG. 5 illustrates hybridization results using the 4166 bp,
3544 bp and 2290 bp 15q11-q13 probes described in Example 2,
without pre-reaction with purified repetitive DNA sequences;
[0021] FIG. 6 illustrates hybridization results using the 5170 bp,
3691 bp, 3344 bp and 2848 bp HIRA probes described in Example 1
without pre-reaction with purified repetitive DNA sequences;
[0022] FIG. 7 illustrates hybridization results using the 4823 bp
1p36.3 probe described in Example 2 on metaphase cells of a normal
individual, with pre-reaction with purified repetitive DNA
sequences;
[0023] FIG. 8 illustrates a comparative hybridization result using
the 4823 bp 1p36.3 probe of FIG. 7 without pre-reaction with
purified repetitive DNA sequences;
[0024] FIG. 9 illustrates hybridization results using the 4724 bp
and 4823 bp 1p36.3 probes described in Example 2 with pre-reaction
with purified repetitive DNA sequences, and wherein single copy
hybridizations were observed on homologous pairs of chromosome
1s;
[0025] FIG. 10 illustrates a comparative hybridization result using
the 4724 bp and 4823 bp 1p36.3 probes described in Example 2
without pre-reaction with purified repetitive DNA sequences, and
depicting the same single copy hybridizations shown in FIG. 9;
[0026] FIG. 11 illustrates hybridization results using the 4166 bp,
3544 bp and 2290 bp 15q11-q13 probes described in Example 2 without
pre-reaction with purified DNA sequences on metaphase cells of a
patient affected with Prader-Willi syndrome and known to harbor a
deletion of 15q11-q13 sequences for one chromosomal allele, with a
star indicating lack of hybridization at the deleted chromosome
position and with the arrow indicating hybridization to a single
chromosome; and
[0027] FIG. 12 illustrates hybridization results using the 3691 bp,
3344 bp and 2848 bp HIRA probes described in Example 1 without
pre-reaction with purified DNA sequences on metaphase cells of a
patient affected with DiGeorge/Velo-Cardio-Facial Syndrome (VCFS)
known to harbor a deletion of 22q11.2 sequences, wherein the star
indicating lack of hybridization at the deleted chromosome position
and the arrow indicating a normal homolog.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0028] The present invention is concerned with nucleic acid (e.g.,
DNA) hybridization probes useful for detection of genetic or
neoplastic disorders. The probes are in the form of labeled nucleic
acid fragments or a collection of labeled nucleic acid fragments
whose hybridization to a target sequence can be detected. The
invention also pertains to methods of developing, generating and
labeling such probes, and to uses thereof.
[0029] The labeled probes hereof may be used with any nucleic acid
target that may potentially contain repetitive sequences. These
target sequences may include, but are not limited to chromosomal or
purified nuclear DNA, heteronuclear RNA, or mRNA species that
contain repetitive sequences as integral components of the
transcript. In the ensuing detailed explanation, the usual case of
a DNA target sequence and DNA probes is discussed; however, those
skilled in the art will understand that the discussion is equally
applicable (with art-recognized differences owing to the nature of
the target sequences and probes) to other nucleic acid species.
[0030] An important characteristic of the probes of the invention
is that they are composed of "single copy" or "unique" DNA
sequences which are both complementary to at least a portion of the
target DNA region of interest and are essentially free of sequences
complementary to repeat sequences within the genome of which the
target region is a part. Accordingly, a probe made up of a single
copy or unique sequence is complementary to essentially only one
sequence in the corresponding genome. As used herein, a "repeat
sequence" is a sequence which repeatedly appears in the genome of
which the target DNA is a part, with a sequence identity between
repeats of at least about 60%, more preferably at least about 80%,
and which is of sufficient length or has other qualities which
would cause it to interfere with the desired specific hybridization
of the probe to the target DNA, i.e., the probe would hybridize
with multiple copies of the repeat sequence. Generally speaking, a
repeat sequence appears at least about 10 times in the genome (more
preferably at least about 50 times, and most preferably at least
about 200 times) and has a length of at least about 50 nucleotides,
and more preferably at least about 100 nucleotides. Repeat
sequences can be of any variety, eg., tandem, interspersed,
palindromic or shared repetitive sequences (with some copies in the
target 30 region and some elsewhere in the genome), and can appear
near the centromeres of chromosomes, distributed over a single
chromosome, or throughout some or all chromosomes. Normally, with
but few exceptions, repeat sequences do not express physiologically
useful proteins.
[0031] Repetitive sequences occur in multiple copies in the haploid
genome. The number of copies can range from two to hundreds of
thousands, wherein the Alu family of repetitive DNA are exemplary
of the latter numerous variety. The copies of a repeat may be
clustered or interspersed throughout the genome. Repeats may be
clustered in one or more locations in the genome, for example,
repetitive sequences occurring near the centromeres of each
chromosome, and variable number tandem repeats (VNTRs) Nakamura et
al, Science, 23 5: 16 16 (1987); or the repeats may be distributed
over a single chromosome for example, repeats found only on the X
chromosome as described by Bardoni et al., Cytogenet. Cell Genet.,
46: 575 (1987); or the repeats may be distributed over all the
chromosomes, for example, the Alu family of repetitive
sequences.
[0032] Simple repeats of low complexity can be found within genes
but are more commonly found in non-coding genomic sequences. Such
repeated elements consist of mono-, di-, ti-, tetra-, or
penta-nucleotide core sequence elements arrayed in tandem units.
Often the number of tandem units comprising these repeated
sequences varies at the identical locations among genomes from
different individuals. These repetitive elements can be found by
searching for consecutive runs of the core sequence elements in
genomic sequences.
[0033] As used herein, "sequence identity" refers to a relationship
between two or more polynucleotide sequences, namely a reference
sequence and a given sequence to be compared with the reference
sequence. Sequence identity is determined by comparing the given
sequence to the reference sequence after the sequences have been
optimally aligned to produce the highest degree of sequence
similarity, as determined by the match between strings of such
sequences. Upon such alignment, sequence identity is ascertained on
a position-by-position basis, e.g., the sequences are "identical"
at a particular position if at that position, the nucleotides are
identical. The total number of such position identities is then
divided by the total number of nucleotides or residues in the
reference sequence to give % sequence identity. Sequence identity
can be readily calculated by known methods, including but not
limited to, those described in Computational Molecular Biology,
Lesk A. N., ed., Oxford University Press, New York (1988);
Biocomputing: Informatics and Genome Projects, Smith D. W., ed.,
Academic Press, New York (1993); Computer Analysis of Sequence
Data, Part I, Griffin A. M., and Griffin H. G., eds., Humana Press,
New Jersey (1994); Sequence Analysis in Molecular Biology, von
Heinge G., Academic Press (1987); Sequence Analysis Primer,
Gribskov M. and Devereux J., eds., M. Stockton Press, New York
(1991); and Carillo H., and Lipman D., SIAM J. Applied Math.,
48:1073 (1988). Preferred methods to determine the sequence
identity are designed to give the largest match between the
sequences tested. Methods to determine sequence identity are
codified in publicly available computer programs which determine
sequence identity between given sequences. Examples of such
programs include, but are not limited to, the GCG program package
(Devereux et al., Nuc. Ac. Res., 12(1):387 (1984)), BLASTP, BLASTN
and FASTA (Altschul et al., J. Molec. Biol., 215:403-410 (1990)).
The BLASTX program is publicly available from NCBI and other
sources (BLAST Manual, Altschul et al., NCBI, NLM, NIH, Bethesda,
Md. 20894; Altschul et al., J. Molec. Biol., 215:403-410 (1990)).
These programs optimally align sequences using default gap weights
in order to produce the highest level of sequence identity between
the given and reference sequences. As an illustration, by a
polynucleotide having a nucleotide sequence having at least, for
example, 95% "sequence identity" to a reference nucleotide
sequence, it is intended that the nucleotide sequence of the given
polynucleotide is identical to the reference sequence except that
the given polynucleotide sequence may include up to 5 differences
per each 100 nucleotides of the reference nucleotide sequence. In
other words, in a polynucleotide having a nucleotide sequence
having at least 95% identity relative to the reference nucleotide
sequence, up to 5% of the nucleotides in the reference sequence may
be deleted or substituted with another nucleotide, or a number of
nucleotides up to 5% of the total nucleotides in the reference
sequence may be inserted into the reference sequence. Inversions in
either sequence are detected by these computer programs based on
the similarity of the reference sequence to the antisense strand of
the homologous test sequence. These variants of the reference
sequence may occur at the 5' or 3' terminal positions of the
reference nucleotide sequence or anywhere between those terminal
positions, interspersed either individually among nucleotides in
the reference sequence or in one or more contiguous groups within
the reference sequence.
[0034] The single copy probes of the invention preferably should
have a length of at least about 50 nucleotides, and more preferably
at least about 100 nucleotides. Probes of this length are
sufficient for Southern blot analyses. However, if other analyses
such as FISH are employed, the probes should be somewhat longer,
i.e., at least about 500 nucleotides, and more preferably at least
about 2000 nucleotides in length. The probes can be used to detect
virtually any type of chromosomal rearrangement, such as deletions,
duplications, insertions, additions, inversions or
translocations.
[0035] In order to develop probes in accordance with the invention,
the sequence of the target DNA region must be known. The target
region may be an entire chromosome or only portions thereof where
rearrangements have been identified. With this sequence knowledge,
the objective is to determine the boundaries of single copy or
unique sequences within the target region. This is preferably
accomplished by inference from the locations of repetitive
sequences within the target region. Normally, the sequence of the
target region is compared with known repeat sequences from the
corresponding genome, using available computer software. Once the
repeat sequences within the target region are identified, the
intervening sequences are deduced to be single copy (i.e., the
sequences between adjacent repeat sequences).
[0036] Optimal alignment of the target and repetitive sequences for
comparison may be conducted by the local homology algorithm of
Smith et al., Adv. Appl. Math., 2:482 (1981), by the homology
alignment algorithm of Needleman et al., J. Mol. Biol., 48:443
(1970). The results obtained from the heuristic methods (Pearson et
al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 85:244 (1988); Altschul et al., J.
Molec. Biol., 215:403-410 (1990)) are generally not as
comprehensive as the methods of Smith et al. (1981) and Needleman
et al., (1970). However, they are faster than these methods.
[0037] Once the single copy sequence information is obtained,
certain of the single copy sequences (normally the longest) are
used to design hybridization probes. In this regard, probes may be
of varying "complexity" as defined by Britten et al., Methods of
Enzymol., 29:363 (1974) and as further explained by Cantor et al.,
Biophysical Chemistry: Part III: The Behavior of Biological
Macromolecules, pp. 1228-1230. The complexity of selected probes is
dependent upon the application for which it is designed. In
general, the larger the target area, the more complex the probe.
The complexity of a probe needed to detect a set of sequences will
decrease as hybridization sensitivity increases. At high
sensitivity and low background, smaller and less complex probes can
be used.
[0038] With current hybridization techniques, it is possible to
obtain reliable, easily detectable signals with relatively small
probes in accordance with the invention. A readily detectable
signal was obtained with a probe on the order of 2 kb in length,
using FISH technology. This sensitivity of the present method is
improved compared to the prior art (U.S. Pat. No. 5,756,696)
because the probes of the present invention are homogeneous single
copy sequences. However, smaller amplified segments, each
comprising non-repetitive sequences, may also be used in
combination as probes to achieve adequate signals for in situ
hybridization. Complex single copy probes that hybridize to
duplicated or triplicated targets can also increase hybridization
signals.
[0039] One application of the use of multiple fragment probes is in
the detection of translocations between different chromosomes.
Proportionately increasing the complexity of the probe also permits
analysis of multiple compact regions of the genome simultaneously.
For a single chromosome, the portion of the probe targeted to one
side of the breakpoint can be labeled and detected differently from
that targeted to the other side of the breakpoint so that the
derivative or translocated chromosome is detected by one label and
is distinguishable from the intact normal chromosome which has both
labels.
[0040] Once appropriate single copy sequences in the chromosomal
region of interest have been identified, PCR is preferably used for
amplifying the appropriate DNA to obtain probes. PCR is a well
known technique for amplifying specific DNA segments in geometric
progression and relies upon repeated cycles of DNA
polymerase-catalyzed extension from a pair of oligonucleotide
primers with homology to the 5' end and to the complement of the 3'
end of the DNA segment to be amplified.
[0041] The nucleic acid (e.g., DNA) that serves as the PCR template
may be single stranded or double stranded, but when the DNA is
single stranded, it will typically be converted to double stranded.
The length of the template DNA may be as short as 50 bp, but
usually will be at least about 100 bp long, and more usually at
least about 150 bp long, and may be as long as 10,000 bp or longer,
but will usually not exceed 50,000 bp in length, and more usually
will not exceed 20,000 bp in length. The DNA may be free in
solution, flanked at one or both ends with non-template DNA,
present in a cloning vector such as a plasmid and the like, with
the only criteria being that the DNA be available for participation
in the primer extension reaction. The template DNA may be derived
from a variety of different sources, so long as it is complementary
to the target chromosomal or immobilized DNA sequence. The amount
of template DNA that is combined with the other reagents will range
from about 1 molecule to 1 pmol, usually from about 50 molecules to
0.1 pmol, and more usually from about 0.01 pmol to 100 fmol. The
oligonucleotide primers with which the template nucleic acid is
contacted will be of sufficient length to provide for hybridization
to complementary template DNA under annealing conditions but will
be of insufficient length to form stable hybrids with template DNA
under polymerization conditions. The primers will generally be at
least about 10 nucleotides (nt) in length, usually at least 15 nt
in length and more usually at least 16 nt in length and may be as
long as 30 nt in length or longer, where the length of the primers
will generally range from 18 to 50 nt in length, usually from about
20 to 35 nt in length. The yield of longer amplification products
can be enhanced using primers of 30 to 35 nt and high fidelity
polymerases (described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,436,149).
[0042] To maximize the signal intensity obtained during in situ
hybridization, primer sequence pairs are preferred which, upon
amplification, produce a DNA fragment that spans nearly the entire
length of each single-copy genomic sequence interval. Hence,
contiguous or closely spaced (software excludes pairs that are
separated by .ltoreq.70% of the length of the single copy interval)
primer pairs are generally excluded from consideration for
producing probes for in situ hybridization. With the exception of
cytogenetic preparations, this criterion is generally not
applicable for probes that are hybridized to immobilized cloned or
synthetic nucleic acid targets, since signal intensities of shorter
probes are usually adequate due to the increased number of target
molecules.
[0043] However, in order to optimize the yield and kinetics of the
PCR reaction, the desired primer sequences are also subject to
other criteria. First, a primer sequence should not be
substantially self-complementary or complementary to the second
primer. In particular, potential primer sequences are excluded
which could result in the formation of stable hybrids involving the
3' terminus of the primer and either another sequence in the same
or the second primer (defined as .gtoreq.6 base pairs).
Additionally, the T.sub.m of one member of the primer pair should
occur within 2.degree. C. of its counterpart, which enables them to
denature and anneal to the template nearly simultaneously. Software
is well known in the art to identify primer sequences that satisfy
all of the preferred criteria (see for example the Oligo 6 tour
located on the Broad Institute website or at oligo.net).
[0044] The PCR reaction mixture will normally further comprise an
aqueous buffer medium which includes a source of monovalent ions, a
source of divalent cations and a buffering agent. Any convenient
source of monovalent ions, such as KCl, K-acetate,
NH.sub.4-acetate, K-glutamate, NH.sub.4 Cl, ammonium sulfate, and
the like may be employed, where the amount of monovalent ion source
present in the buffer will typically be present in an amount
sufficient to provide for a conductivity in a range from about 500
to 20,000, usually from about 1000 to 10,000, and more usually from
about 3,000 to 6,000 microohms. The divalent cation may be
magnesium, manganese, zinc and the like, where the cation will
typically be magnesium. Any convenient source of magnesium cation
may be employed, including MgCl.sub.2, Mg-acetate, and the like.
The amount of Mg.sup.+2-present in the buffer may range from 0.5 to
10 mM, but will preferably range from about 2 to 4 mM, more
preferably from about 2.25 to 2.75 mM and will ideally be at about
2.45 mM. Representative buffering agents or salts that may be
present in the buffer include Tris, Tricine, HEPES, MOPS and the
like, where the amount of buffering agent will typically range from
about 5 to 150 mM, usually from about 10 to 100 mM, and more
usually from about 20 to 50 mM, where in certain preferred
embodiments the buffering agent will be present in an amount
sufficient to provide a pH ranging from about 6.0 to 9.5, where
most preferred is pH 7.3 at 72.degree. C. Other agents which may be
present in the buffer medium include chelating agents, such as
EDTA, EGTA and the like.
[0045] Also present in the PCR reaction mixtures is a melting point
reducing agent, i.e., a reagent that lowers the melting point of
DNA. Suitable melting point reducing agents are those agents that
interfere with the hydrogen bonding interaction of two nucleotides,
where representative base pair destabilization agents include:
betaine, formamide, urea, thiourea, acetamide, methylurea,
glycinamide, and the like, where betaine is a preferred agent. The
melting point reducing agent will typically be present in amounts
ranging from about 20 to 500 mM, usually from about 50 to 200 mM
and more usually from about 80 to 150 mM.
[0046] In preparing the PCR reaction mixture, the various
constituent components may be combined in any convenient order. For
example, the buffer may be combined with primer, polymerase and
then template DNA, or all of the various constituent components may
be combined at the same time to produce the reaction mixture.
[0047] Following preparation of the PCR reaction mixture, it is
subjected to a plurality of reaction cycles, where each reaction
cycle comprises: (1) a denaturation step, (2) an annealing step,
and (3) a polymerization step. The number of reaction cycles will
vary depending on the application being performed, but will usually
be at least 15, more usually at least 20 and may be as high as 60
or higher, where the number of different cycles will typically
range from about 20 to 40. For methods where more than about 25,
usually more than about 30 cycles are performed, it may be
convenient or desirable to introduce additional polymerase into the
reaction mixture such that conditions suitable for enzymatic primer
extension are maintained.
[0048] The denaturation step comprises heating the reaction mixture
to an elevated temperature and maintaining the mixture at the
elevated temperature for a period of time sufficient for any double
stranded or hybridized nucleic acid present in the reaction mixture
to dissociate. For denaturation, the temperature of the reaction
mixture will usually be raised to, and maintained at, a temperature
ranging from about 85 to 100.degree. C. usually from about 90 to
98.degree. C., and more usually from about 93 to 96.degree. C. for
a period of time ranging from about 3 to 120 seconds, usually from
about 5 to 30 seconds.
[0049] Following denaturation, the PCR reaction mixture will be
subjected to conditions sufficient for primer annealing to template
DNA present in the mixture. The temperature to which the reaction
mixture is lowered to achieve these conditions will usually be
chosen to provide optimal efficiency and specificity, and will
generally range from about 50 to 75.degree. C., usually from about
55 to 70.degree. C. and more usually from about 60 to 68.degree. C.
Annealing conditions will be maintained for a period of time
ranging from about 15 seconds to 30 minutes, usually from about 30
seconds to 5 minutes.
[0050] Following annealing of primer to template DNA or during
annealing of primer to template DNA, the reaction mixture will be
subjected to conditions sufficient to provide for polymerization of
nucleotides to the primer ends in manner such that the primer is
extended in a 5' to 3' direction using the DNA to which it is
hybridized as a template, i.e. conditions sufficient for enzymatic
production of primer extension product. To achieve polymerization
conditions, the temperature of the reaction mixture will typically
be raised to or maintained at a temperature ranging from about 65
to 75.degree. C., usually from about 67 to 73.degree. C. and
maintained for a period of time ranging from about 15 seconds to 20
minutes, usually from about 30 seconds to 5 minutes.
[0051] The above cycles of denaturation, annealing and
polymerization may be performed using an automated device,
typically known as a thermal cycler. Thermal cyclers that may be
employed are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,612,473; 5,602,756;
5,538,871; and 5,475,610.
[0052] In addition to the PCR, DNA fragments corresponding to
unique sequences can also be obtained by a variety of other
methods, including but not limited to deletion mutagenesis,
restriction digestion, direct synthesis and DNA ligation.
[0053] If the genomic fragment is obtained by amplification or
purification from DNA containing repetitive sequences, the fragment
must then be purified prior to labeling and hybridization.
Purification of homogeneously-sized DNA fragments can be
accomplished by a variety of methods, including but not limited to
electrophoresis and high pressure liquid chromatography. In the
preferred method, amplified fragments are separated according to
size by gel electrophoreses in Seakem LE Agarose using Tris Acetate
buffer (Sambrook, Fritsch & Maniatis, Molecular Cloning: A
Laboratory Manual [Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 1989]),
stained with a dye such as ethidium bromide or Syber-Green,
visualized with ultraviolet light (300 nm), excised from the gel
using a scalpel. Each DNA fragment is then recovered from the gel
fragment using a Micro-con 100 (Millipore, Watertown, Mass.) column
by spin centrifugation.
[0054] Phenol-chloroform extraction of the amplified DNA is not an
adequate method of purification. When this approach was tested,
this purification technique resulted in nonspecific hybridization
to all chromosomes along their entire length, which is consistent
with the pattern produced by hybridization of repetitive sequences
(data not shown). This occurs because, during the PCR process, DNA
polymerase extends the replicated strand past the position of the
second primer into adjacent repetitive sequences if the initial
template contains genomic DNA sequences. These extension products
which are longer than the amplification product, are present in all
such PCR reactions. Since, in the present method, repetitive
sequences are adjacent to the segments being amplified, the
extension products are likely to contain such sequences.
Phenol-chloroform extraction of PCR reactions does not remove such
extension products. PCR reaction mixtures containing these
sequences may hybridize to repetitive genomic DNA in addition to
the target sequence. Hence, isolation of the purified genomic
amplification fragment (whether it is obtained directly from
genomic DNA or by PCR), is a preferred embodiment of the subject
invention and would not be obvious to one skilled in the art.
[0055] Insertion of the purified fragments into plasmids,
bacteriophages, or artificial chromosome cloning vehicles capable
of being propagated in E. coli, yeast, or other species may be
desirable to reduce the cost and labor required for repeated
preparation of single copy DNA probes. A variety of cloning vectors
have been optimized for rapid ligation and selection for vectors
containing PCR products (for example: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,487,993 and
5,766,891). If the probe will be used in multiple hybridizations,
then the cloned recombinant form will be less expensive to produce
in large quantities than by iterative PCR amplification from the
same genomic DNA template. In addition, genomic insert in the
cloned probe does not have to be isolated during purification,
since the fragment recombined with vector is propagated in the
absence of any other genomic DNA that could potentially contain
repetitive sequences. Finally, the cloned vehicle provides a
potentially inexhaustible source of probe, whereas natural genomic
DNA templates may have to be reisolated from cell lines or from
other sources. Single copy DNA fragments obtained by PCR
amplification as described above are isolated according to size by
gel electrophoresis and purified by columns as is well known in the
art.
[0056] These fragments are then labeled with nonisotopic
identifying label such as a fluorophore, an enzymatic conjugate, or
one selected from the group consisting of biotin or other moieties
recognized by avidin, streptavidin, or specific antibodies. There
are several types of non-isotopic identifying labels. One type is a
label which is chemically bound to the probe and serves as the
means for identification and localization directly. An example of
this type would be a fluorochrome moiety which upon application of
radiation of proper wavelengths will become excited into a high
energy state and emit fluorescent light. The probes can be
synthesized chemically or preferably be prepared using the methods
of nick-translation (Rigby et al., J. Mol. Biol., 113:237-251,
(1977)) or Klenow labeling (Feinberg et al., Anal. Biochem.,
137:266-267, (1984)) in the conventional manner using a reactant
comprising the identifying label of choice (but not limited to)
conjugated to a nucleotide such as dATP or dUTP. The fragments are
either directly labeled with a fluorophore-tagged nucleotide or
indirectly labeled by binding the labeled duplex to a
fluorescently-labeled antibody that recognizes the modified
nucleotide that is incorporated into the fragment as described
below. Nick-translations (100 .mu.l reaction) utilize
endonuclease-free DNA polymerase I (Roche Molecular Biochemicals,
Indianapolis, Ind.) and DNase I (Worthington Biochemical
Corporation, Lakewood, N.J.). Each fragment is combined with DNA
polymerase (20 units/microgram DNA), DNase I (10 microgram/100
.mu.l reaction), labeled nucleotide (0.05 mm final) and nick
translation buffer. The reaction is performed at 15.degree. C. for
45 minutes to 2 hours and yields a variety of labeled probe
fragments of different nucleotide sizes in the 100 to 500 bp size
range.
[0057] Other methods for labeling and detecting probes in common
use may be applied to the single-copy DNA probes produced by the
present method. These include: fluorochrome labels (which resolve
labeling on individual chromatids which serves as an affirmation
that hybridization occurred unequivocably, and further allows
detection precisely at site of hybridization rather than at some
distance away), chemical reagents which yields an identifiable
change when combined with the proper reactants (for example,
alkaline phosphatase, horseradish peroxidase and galactosidase,
each of which reacts and provide a detectable color change that
identifies the presence and position of the target sequence), and
indirect linkage mechanism of specifically binding entities (such
as the biotin-avidin system in which the probe is preferably joined
to biotin by conventional methods and added to an avidin- or
streptavidin-conjugated fluorochrome or enzyme which provides the
specificity for attaching the fluorochrome or enzyme to the
probe).
[0058] It will be recognized that other identifying labels may also
be used with the described probes. These include fluorescent
compositions such as energy transfer groups, conjugated proteins,
antibodies and antigens, or radioactive isotopes.
[0059] Chromosomal hybridization and detection are a preferred use
of DNA probes generated by the present invention. DNA probes
generated by the present method may be hybridized either directly
to complementary nucleic acids in cells (in situ hybridization) or
to nucleic acids immobilized on a substrate. A preferred use of the
method is in situ hybridization, which is well known in the art,
being described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,985,549; 5,447,841; 5,756,696;
5,869,237. Based on early work of Gall and Pardue (Proc. Natl.
Acad. Sci., 63:378-383, 1969), isotopic in situ hybridization was
established in the 1970s (see Gerhard et al., Proc. Natl. Acad.
Sci., 78:3755-3759, 1981 and Harper et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci.,
78:4458-4460, 1981 as examples) and subsequently nonisotopic in
situ hybridization was established. The technique of nonisotopic in
situ hybridization is reviewed and a protocol is provided for use
in chromosomal hybridization by Knoll and Lichter, in Current
Protocols in Human Genetics, Vol. 1, Unit 4.3 (Green-Wiley, New
York, 1994) and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,985,549. The technique relies on
the formation of duplex nucleic acid species, in which one strand
is derived from a labeled probe molecule and the second strand
comprises the target to be detected. Target molecules may comprise
chromosomes or cellular nucleic acids. Numerous methods have been
developed to label the probe and visualize the duplex.
[0060] The present method is intended to be used with any nucleic
acid target containing repetitive sequences. The sample containing
the target nucleic acid sequence can be prepared from cellular
nuclei, morphologically intact cells (or tissues), chromosomes,
other cellular material components, or synthetically produced
nucleic acids. The samples may be obtained from the fluids or
tissues of a mammal, preferably human, which are suspected of being
afflicted with a disease or disorder either from a biopsy or
post-mortem, or from plants.
[0061] As an example, chromosomal preparations can be made in the
following manner: phytohemagglutinin-stimulated peripheral
lymphocytes are cultured in RPMI 1640 medium containing 10% fetal
calf serum for 72 hours at 37.degree. C. Ethidium bromide (100
ug/10 ml final) is added 11/2 hours prior to harvest. Colcemid (1
ug/10 ml final) is added during the final 20 min of incubation with
ethidium bromide. The cells are then pelleted by centrifugation and
incubated preferably in 0.075 M KCl at 37.degree. C. for about 20
minutes. Cells are then pelleted again and fixed in 3 changes of
Carnoy's fixative (3:1 methanol:acetic acid volumetric ratio) using
conventional cytogenetic techniques. [For a review of chromosome
preparation from peripheral blood cells, see Bangs and Donlon in
Dracopoli et al., eds., Current Protocols in Human Genetics, Vol.
1, Unit 4.1 (Green-Wiley, New York, 1994)]. The nuclei or cells in
suspension can then be dropped onto clear glass coverslips or
microscope slides in a humid environment to promote chromosome
spreading. The coverslips or microscope slides can then be
preferentially air dried overnight, aged or stored until required
for use in in situ hybridization.
[0062] Immediately prior to chromosomal denaturation in the in situ
hybridization procedure, the dried or stored chromosome
preparations can be pretreated in prewarmed 2.times.SSC (components
are in Sambrook, Fritsch & Maniatis, Molecular Cloning: A
Laboratory Manual [Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 1989]) for
30 minutes at 37.degree. C. followed by dehydration in an ethanol
series (2 minutes each in 70%, 80%, 90% and 100% ethanol).
[0063] When the target nucleic acid sequence is DNA, DNA in the
sample can be denatured by heat or alkali. [See Harper et al.,
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 78:4458-60 (1981), for alkali denaturation
and Gall et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 63:370-383 (1969)].
Denaturation is carried out so that the DNA strands are separated
with minimal shearing, degradation or oxidation.
[0064] In the preferred current method, the labeled single copy
probe is resuspended in deionized formamide and denatured at
70-75.degree. C. The chromosomal template is denatured in a
solution containing 70% formamide/2.times.SSC, pH 7.0 followed by
dehydration in an ethanol series (2 minutes each in cold 70%
ethanol and room temperature 80, 90 and 100% ethanol).
Hybridization of the labeled probe to the corresponding template is
carried out in a solution containing 50% formamide/2.times.SSC/10%
dextran sulfate/BSA [bovine serum albumin; 1 mg/ml final] for a few
hours to overnight. The length of time depending on the complexity
of the probe that is utilized. After hybridization, non-hybridizing
excess probe is removed by a washing procedure. The duplexes are
treated with a series of 15-30 minute washes: first with a solution
of 50% formamide/2.times.SSC at 39-45.degree. C., then 2.times.SSC
at 39-45.degree. C., followed by a 15-30 minute wash at room
temperature in 1.times.SSC. The hybridized sequences are detected
by relevant means. For example, digoxigenin-dUTP can be but is not
limited to detection by an antibody to digoxigenin such as
rhodamine or fluorescein conjugated antibody (Roche Molecular
Biochemicals, Indianapolis, Ind.). Following detection, spurious
detection reagents are removed by washing in varying SSC and
SSC/triton-X concentrations, the chromosomes are counterstained
with a dye such as DAPI and the hybridized preparation is mounted
in an antifade solution such as Vectashield (Vector Laboratories,
Burlingame, Calif.). The cells are examined by fluorescence
microscopy with the appropriate filter sets and imaged with a
charge coupled device (CCD).
[0065] An important aspect of the present invention is that the
probe or target DNA does not require pre-reaction with a
non-specific nucleic acid competitor such as purified repetitive
DNA or that the probe does not require experimental verification
that the single copy fragments or recombinant cloned probes do not
contain repetitive sequences (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,985,549; 5,447,841;
5,663,319; 5,756,696) because the probes are single copies without
repetitive elements. This results in a significantly improved
signal to noise ratio. A signal to noise ratio is defined as a
ratio of the probability of the probe detecting a bona fide signal
of hybridization of the target nucleic acid sequence to that of the
probability of detecting the background caused by non-specific
binding of the labeled probe.
[0066] The hybridization reactions carried out using the probes of
the invention are themselves essentially conventional. As
indicated, two exemplary types of hybridizations are the Southern
blot and FISH techniques, well known to those skilled in the art.
However, the visual patterns resulting from use of the probes,
termed indicator patterns, are extremely useful tools for
cytogenetic analyses, especially molecular cytogenetic analyses.
These indicator patterns facilitate microscopic and/or flow
cytometric identification of normal and abnormal chromosomes and
characterization of the genetic abnormalities. Since multiple
compatible methods of probe visualization are available, the
binding patterns of different components of the probes can be
distinguished, for example, by color. Thus, the invention is
capable of producing virtually any desired indicator pattern on the
chromosomes visualized with one or more colors (a multi-color
indicator pattern) and/or other indicator methods.
[0067] Preferred indicator patterns derived from using the probes
of the invention comprise one or more "bands," meaning a reference
point in a genome comprising a target DNA sequence with a probe
bound thereto, and wherein the resulting duplex is detectable by
some indicator. Depending on hybridization washes and the detection
conditions, a band can extend from the narrow context of a sequence
providing a reliable signal to a single chromosome region to
multiple regions on single or plural chromosomes. The indicator
bands from the probes hereof are to be distinguished from bands
produced by pretreatment and chemical staining. The probe-produced
bands of the present invention are based upon the complementarity
of the DNA sequences, whereas bands produced by chemical staining
depend upon natural characteristics of the chromosomes (such as
structure or protein composition), but not by hybridization to the
DNA sequences thereof. Furthermore, chemical staining techniques
are useful only in connection with metaphase chromosomes, whereas
the probe-produced bands of the present invention are useful for
both metaphase and interphase chromosomes.
[0068] The following examples set forth the preferred techniques
employed for the development, generation, labeling and use of
specific DNA probes designed to hybridize to a target DNA sequence
in a genome. It is to be understood, however, that these examples
are provided by way of illustration and nothing therein should be
taken as a limitation upon the overall scope of the invention.
Example 1
Development of HIRA Gene Probe
[0069] A known genetic disorder on human chromosome 22 involves a
deletion of one HIRA gene in chromosome band 22q11.2, i.e., in
normal individuals; there are two copies of the HIRA gene, whereas
in affected individuals, only one copy is present. This deletion is
considered to be a cause of haploinsufficiency syndromes such as
DiGeorge and Velo-Cardio-Facial Syndromes (VCFS), because
insufficient amounts of gene product(s) may disrupt normal
embryonic development (Fibison et al., Amer. J. Hum. Genet.,
46:888-95 (1990); Consevage et al., Amer. J. Cardiol., 77:1023-1205
(1996)). Other syndromes including Cat Eye Syndrome and derivative
chromosome 22 syndrome result from an excess of genomic sequences
from this region (Mears et al., Amer. J. Hum. Genet., 55:134-142
(1994); Knoll et al., Amer. J. Med. Genet., 55:221-224 (1995)).
Typically individuals with these syndromes have supernumerary
derivative chromosome 22s.
[0070] Initially, a computer-based search using the search term
"HIRA" was performed using Entrez Nucleotide software at the
National Library of Medicine website. This identified a series of
cDNA sequences for the HIRA gene in GenBank. The full length cDNA
sequence was selected (GenBank Accession No. X81844), having 3859
bp. This cDNA sequence was then compared with the genome sequence
which included draft sequences at the National Library of Medicine
(which can be found on the website for National Center for
Biotechnological Information located at ncbi.nlm.nih.gov). This was
done in order to determine whether genomic sequences of sufficient
length were available for probe development. This comparison
confirmed that the entire HIRA genomic sequence was known, and that
the coding sequence interval spanned a length of 100,836 bp in the
chromosome. Since the available contiguous genomic sequence in
GenBank exceeded the length of the coding interval, it was possible
to select an interval longer than the coding region in order to
include sequences from the gene promoter at the 5' end and
untranslated sequences and polyadenylation signal at the 3' end. A
total genomic interval of approximately 103 kb was thus selected.
Position 1 of this .about.103 kb interval corresponds to position
798,334 in GenBank Accession number NT.sub.--001039.
[0071] In the next step, the selected 103 kb genomic interval was
compared with known high-complexity repeat sequence family members
or consensus sequences that are aligned with the test genomic
sequences (SEQ ID Nos. 1-428) and all combinations of
low-complexity tandem repeat sequences of at least 17 nucleotides
in length (mono-, di-, tri-, and tetranucleotide units) known to be
present in the human genome (SEQ ID Nos. 447-479). This comparison
was done using the publicly available CENSOR program which can be
found at the Genetic Information Research Institute website,
www.girinst.org. This program utilizes the Smith-Waterman global
alignment comparison algorithm to determine the locations and
distribution of repeat sequences within the genomic interval. A
Smith-Waterman alignment of repetitive with genomic sequences was
performed with the following parameters: Length of margin sequence:
50 nt, minimum length to extract insertion: 12 nt, minimum margin
to combine matching fragments: 30, similarity threshold: 22,
similarity threshold to always keep match: 35, ratio threshold:
2.8, relative similarity threshold: 2.8, gap constant D1: 2.95, gap
constant D2: 1.90, and mismatch penalty: -1.0. This analysis
generated the following table, which details the coordinates of
repetitive sequence family members found in and adjacent to the
human HIRA gene coding sequence.
TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Position (bp) in Seq. Listing HIRA position
Corresponding to (bp) HIRA Match Begin End Repeat Family SEQ ID NO.
Begin End 798411 798434 (AC) 452 1 24 798983 799395 MLT2A1 444 1
434 801257 801348 CHESHIRE_A 420 132 223 801367 801729 L1ME_ORF2
425 757 1089 801746 802032 Alu-Jb 2 2 289 802033 802308 L1ME_ORF2
425 1090 1380 802355 802434 L1MB6_5 77 1629 1710 802448 802798
L1M3D_5 66 996 1348 802811 803100 Alu-Y 2 1 290 803104 803189
L1M3D_5 66 907 995 803199 803454 Alu-Jb 2 5 290 803472 803545
Alu-Spqxz 2 2 76 803548 804061 L1MEC_5 345 1860 2392 804079 804365
Alu-Sz 2 6 290 804476 804559 L1P_MA2 348 6242 6321 804625 804885
L1ME_ORF2 425 2287 2568 804936 804997 MLT1E2 106 198 260 805011
805077 MLT1E1 105 420 484 805110 805211 L1PBA_5 359 103 204 805212
805862 L1PBA_5 359 1089 1738 805933 805989 Alu-J 2 234 290 805991
806489 L1PBA_5 359 1749 2247 806510 806624 L1 59 1659 1773 806628
806917 Alu-Sz 2 1 290 806919 807254 L1M2_5 61 2377 2716 807301
808176 L1P_MA2 348 3516 4425 808179 808469 Alu-Sz 2 1 290 808476
808734 L1 59 3268 3525 808735 809426 L1ME_ORF2 425 1411 2105 809429
809860 L1P_MA2 348 5607 6044 809861 809993 Alu-Jb 2 2 134 809996
810282 Alu-Jb 2 2 290 810345 811040 L1 59 4711 5402 811041 811221
L1PB3 358 151 333 811226 811513 Alu-Sx 2 1 287 811515 812032 L1PB1
357 330 863 812096 812394 Alu-Jb 2 1 288 812474 812698 Alu-Jb 2 5
229 812721 812836 Alu-Jo 2 2 117 812862 812901 L1P_MA2 348 4315
4354 812903 813078 L1 59 3028 3222 813079 814102 L1ME_ORF2 425 1113
2166 814323 814410 MER1B 315 242 337 814411 814557 CHARLIE3 7 1 281
814780 814916 L1MB7 78 9 143 815061 815181 Alu-Y 2 1 134 815420
815452 LTR67 279 99 131 816487 816772 Alu-Sx 2 5 290 817180 817270
L1MCC_5 335 1384 1473 817332 817620 Alu-Sg 2 1 290 817634 817909
Alu-Sq 2 1 288 817943 818227 Alu-Sx 2 2 289 818368 818578 HAL1 18
1346 1547 818631 818791 LINE2 362 2280 2464 818824 818889 Alu-S 2
223 290 818890 819185 LINE2 362 2465 2749 819328 819450 LINE2 362
1925 2049 819565 819757 LINE2 362 2273 2498 823604 823892 Alu-Jo 2
2 290 826836 827042 Alu-Sxzg 2 84 290 827922 827977 MIR 99 105 160
830762 831371 L1MEC_5 345 1498 2123 831396 831685 Alu-Sx 2 2 290
831687 831774 L1MEC_5 345 2117 2205 831778 832066 Alu-Sx 2 1 290
832155 832288 Alu-FLA 2 5 134 832317 832431 L1MC2 79 666 786 832442
832735 Alu-Sz 2 1 289 832742 832992 L1MC2 79 787 1077 833004 833170
L1ME_ORF2 425 172 340 833177 834590 TIGGER1 148 1 1477 834592
834642 Alu-Jb 2 156 207 834799 834877 Alu-Jb 2 208 290 834907
835194 Alu-Y 2 1 289 835198 835590 TIGGER1 148 1468 1900 835597
835888 Alu-Sx 2 1 290 835946 835979 L1P_MA2 348 4654 4689 836060
836177 MER2 316 229 345 836203 836486 Alu-Sx 2 7 290 836497 836712
MER2 316 1 228 838478 838760 Alu-Sz 2 1 288 838822 839069 Alu-Sx 2
1 288 839086 839373 Alu-Sz 2 1 289 840297 840926 L1MB7 78 269 915
841062 841306 L1MB7 78 7 249 841323 841382 L1ME_ORF2 425 3053 3116
841408 841697 Alu-Sq 2 1 290 841705 841828 Alu-Jo 2 1 136 841829
842012 L1ME_ORF2 425 2870 3052 842744 842871 MER86 239 51 183
842879 843107 Alu-Spqxz 2 3 230 843109 843271 Alu-Jo 2 9 175 847056
847210 MER104 293 1 179 847256 847351 L1ME4 343 128 224 847413
847551 MIR 99 65 218 847570 847695 L1ME4 343 1 127 847865 848137
Alu-Y 2 1 290 848171 848458 Alu-Sg 2 1 290 848493 848564 L1PA7 355
35 105 848646 848928 Alu-Sc 2 5 290 849186 849435 L1ME_ORF2 425
2527 2796 849450 849745 Alu-Sx 2 5 289 850114 850249 L1P_MA2 348
5447 5610 850250 850761 L1 59 3478 4017 850824 850942 L1ME_ORF2 425
1128 1265 851588 851614 (T) 449 1 27 (complement) 851749 851881
L1ME2 341 357 523 852607 852853 L1MA10 72 664 918 852863 853156
Alu-Sc 2 1 290 853176 853211 L1MA10 72 628 663 853212 853267 L1MA9
75 987 1041 853491 853779 Alu-Sz 2 1 290 859137 859435 Alu-Sx 2 1
290 859436 859456 (A) 449 1 21 859570 859805 L1ME3A 342 215 442
859806 860289 L1ME2 341 375 879 860318 860605 Alu-Y 2 1 290 862194
862481 Alu-Sg 2 1 290 865060 865350 Alu-Sq 2 1 290 867521 867800
Alu-Jb 2 1 288 867836 867876 MIR 99 157 196 869546 869802 LINE2 362
123 413 869923 870118 LINE2 362 1251 1450 870124 870202 Alu-J 2 48
132 870203 870296 LINE2 362 1451 1592 870316 870666 LINE2 362 1708
2097 871000 871075 LINE2 362 2617 2736 871650 871935 Alu-Jo 2 1 290
871936 871960 (GAAAAA) 4 28 872154 872444 Alu-Sc 2 1 289 874867
874990 L1MB7 78 529 676 878120 878408 Alu-Sx 2 1 290 881003 881054
MLT1G 109 217 268 881130 881266 MLT1G 109 269 480 881293 881346
MLT1G 109 415 469 881762 881891 LINE2B 363 85 229 882448 882740
Alu-Sb0 2 1 290 883566 883716 Alu-Sz 2 1 288 883782 883977 Alu-Sc 2
2 290 883988 884329 L1P_MA2 348 5600 5935 884333 884623 Alu-Sp 2 1
290 884624 885134 L1ME_ORF2 425 2431 2975 885160 885456 Alu-Jb 2 9
290 885460 885742 L1ME_ORF2 425 2949 3252 885744 886031 Alu-Sx 2 1
288 886032 886082 Alu-Sp 2 291 341 886083 886166 L1MB7 78 137 220
886168 886454 Alu-Sc 2 1 290 886535 887059 L1MB7 78 345 901 887169
887460 Alu-Y 2 1 289 887485 887748 L1MD2 337 794 1072 887752 887779
LOR1I 366 395 422 888253 888318 LINE2 362 2440 2505 888385 888548
LINE2 362 2579 2739 888865 888893 LOR1I 366 394 422 889006 889296
Alu-Jb 2 5 290 889446 889548 Alu-Jo 2 188 290 889549 889677 L1PB3
358 770 897 889842 890133 Alu-Sq 2 1 290 890515 890797 Alu-Sz 2 1
283 890858 890972 L1ME2 341 769 885 890986 891024 LOR1I 366 396 434
891028 891063 LTR66 266 173 207 891126 891536 LINE2 362 1980 2452
891545 891670 LTR16A1 382 9 128 891688 891963 LTR16A 381 146 429
892907 893013 LINE2 362 2636 2747 893851 893924 MLT1L 119 47 119
894528 894849 Alu-Sx 2 1 290 895825 895903 LINE2 362 2592 2664
895912 896083 MER20 317 46 216 897067 897299 MER20 317 2 217 897492
897624 Alu-FLA 2 2 136 897977 898261 Alu-Sc 2 1 290
[0072] The lengths of the non-repetitive intervals were calculated
from these data. For example, a non-repetitive interval of 5358 bp
was determined between coordinate positions 853779 and which
delineate the boundaries of adjacent Alu-Sz and Alu-Sx repetitive
elements. Next, the non-repetitive intervals were sorted based on
their respective lengths. Four of these non-repetitive intervals
were selected for probe development, namely the above-referenced
5358 bp sequence, a 3847 bp sequence (coordinates 819757 and
823604), a 3785 bp sequence (coordinates 843271 and 847056), and a
3130 bp sequence (coordinates 874990 and 878120).
[0073] In the next step, the long PCR technique was used to amplify
portions of the four identified single copy intervals. The
technique followed for amplification of the 5358 bp interval is
described in detail below. Similar techniques were followed for
amplification of the remaining three single copy intervals.
[0074] Probes of maximal length were desired for FISH experiments.
However, in order to optimize the PCR reaction that generated these
probes, other constraints had to be met, which resulted in
amplification products somewhat shorter than the entire
non-repetitive sequence interval. The Prime computer program was
employed to optimize the selection of primers for PCR (Genetics
Computer Group software package, Madison Wis.). The PCR primers
which were optimized for long PCR were constrained as follows: size
of 30-35 nucleotides; GC content of 50-80%; melting temperature of
65-70.degree. C.; the primer was not permitted to self-anneal at
the 3' end with hairpins of greater than 8 nucleotides; the primer
was not permitted to self-anneal at any position with greater than
14; and the primer was permitted to anneal only at a single
position in the target sequence and primer-primer annealing was
limited at the 3' end to less than 8 bp and at any other point less
than 14 bp. In addition, certain constraints were applied to the
amplified PCR product in order to optimize long PCR: length of
5100-5358 nucleotides; GC content of 40-60%; melting temperature of
70-95.degree. C.; difference in forward and reverse primer melting
points less than 2.degree. C. This yielded a possible 517 forward
primers and 382 reverse primers, and a total of 928 possible
products. The Prime program using the foregoing constraints rank
ordered potential primer pairs. The top ranked primers were
selected for synthesis, as set forth in the following Table 2.
These primers were commercially produced (Oligos, Etc.,
Wilsonville, Oreg.).
TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 Coordinates Forward GenBank Accession of
Longest PCR Primer Reverse PCR Primer PCR Primer SEQ ID Probe
Chromosome No., Chromosome Single Copy Intervals, Coordinates,
Coordinates, Nos., Length Gene Band Genomic Sequence Beginning/End
Beginning/End Beginning/End Forward/Reverse (bp) HIRA 22q11.2
NT_001039 853779/859137 853946/853975 859116/859085 429/430 5170
HIRA 22q11.2 NT_001039 819757/823604 819901/819933 823592/823559
431/432 3691 HIRA 22q11.2 NT_001039 843271/847056 843602/843631
846946/846915 433/434 3344 HIRA 22q11.2 NT_001039 874990/878120
875226/875257 878074/878042 435/436 2848
[0075] Using these primers, a long PCR reaction (50 .mu.l) was
performed using 1 microgram of high molecular weight genomic DNA
(purified by phenol extraction) and 200 .mu.M of each
oligonucleotide primer to amplify the 5170 bp probe. Specifically,
high fidelity DNA polymerase (LA-Taq, Takara Chemical Co.) was
employed using the following thermal cycling protocol:
[0076] Step 1--94.degree. C.--5 minutes
[0077] Step 2--98.degree. C.--20 seconds
[0078] Step 3--65.degree. C.--7 minutes
[0079] Step 4--14 times to Step 2
[0080] Step 5--98.degree. C.--20 seconds
[0081] Step 6--65.degree. C.--7 minutes+15 s/cycle
[0082] Step 7--14 times to Step 5
[0083] Step 8--72.degree. C.--10 minutes
[0084] Step 9--0.degree. C.
[0085] Step 10--END
[0086] Because amplification of the 5170 bp probe is less efficient
than amplification of shorter fragments, the initial PCR reaction
did not yield sufficient quantities of probe for multiple
hybridization experiments. Therefore, a 4 .mu.l aliquot of the
original DNA amplification reaction was reamplified using the
following protocol: Step 1--94.degree. C.--1.5 minutes, followed by
Steps 2-10 of the original PCR reaction. Sufficient quantities of
the 5170 bp probe were obtained. An alternative to reamplification
is to increase Step 7 by at least 10 cycles.
[0087] The amplified product was then purified by gel
electrophoresis followed by column chromatography. First, the
amplified product was separated on a 0.8% Seakem LE agarose gel (FC
Bioproducts) in 1.times. modified TAE buffer. The gel was then
stained with ethidium bromide and visualized with UV light. The
fragment corresponding to the correct interval size was excised in
an Ultrafree-DA spin column (Millipore) and centrifuged at 5000 g
for 10 minutes. The DNA was recovered in solution and precipitated
in 1/10 V NaOAc and 2.5 V 95% EtOH (overnight) at -20.degree. C.
The precipitated DNA was then centrifuged, rinsed with cold 70%
EtOH, air dried and resuspended in 20 .mu.l of sterile deionized
water. The DNA was checked on a 0.8% agarose gel (Sigma) to
determine DNA concentration.
[0088] The detailed probe labeling, hybridization, removal of
non-specifically bound probe, and probe detection procedures are
described by Knoll and Lichter, In: Dracopoli et al., (eds),
"Current Protocols in Human Genetics Volume 1", Unit 4.3
(Green-Wiley, New York, 1994). Briefly, in order to label the
probe, a standard nick translation reaction was carried out (Rigby
et al., J. Mol. Biol., 113:237-251, (1977)) using
digoxigenin-11-dUTP as the label. This yielded a series of
overlapping 300-500 bp labeled fragments, which together comprised
the 5170 bp probe.
[0089] The labeled probe fragments were then precipitated by adding
1/10 V NaOAc plus 2.5 V 95% EtOH and carrier DNA (overnight,
-20.degree. C.). On the following day, the precipitated DNA was
centrifuged, lyophilized, and resuspended in deionized sterile
water at a concentration of 125 ng/20 .mu.l.
[0090] A comparison set of hybridizations were carried out with
normal denatured human metaphase chromosomes, using the labeled
probe fragments with and without blocking nucleic acid of the type
described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,447,841, 5,663,319 and 5,756,696.
Twenty .mu.l of resuspended labeled probe was then lyophilized and
resuspended in 10 .mu.l of deionized formamide and denatured for 5
minutes at 70-75.degree. C. to yield single-stranded nucleic acids.
For comparison, probes were pre-reacted with purified repetitive
DNA by adding 125 ng (or 20 .mu.l) of labeled probe to 10
micrograms of C.sub.0t 1 DNA (Life Technologies) and lyophilizing
the mixture. This mixture was then denatured for 5 minutes at
70.degree. C. followed by pre-reaction (or pre-annealing) for 30
minutes at 37.degree. C. to convert the single stranded repetitive
sequences in the probe to double stranded nucleic acid. This
disables the hybridization between the sequences and the chromosome
as target DNA template.
[0091] Subsequently, the denatured probes with or without purified
repetitive DNA (i.e., C.sub.0t 1) were mixed with 1 V prewarmed
hybridization solution (comprised of 4.times.SSC/2 mg/ml nuclease
free bovine serum albumin/20% dextran sulfate/30% sterile deionized
water) and overlaid onto denatured target DNA. The chromosomal
target DNA, fixed to a microscope slide had been denatured at
72.degree. C. for 2 minutes in 50% formamide/2.times.SSC. A
coverslip was placed over the probe hybridization mixture on the
slide, sealed with nail polish enamel to prevent evaporation and
placed in a moist chamber at 39.degree. C. overnight.
[0092] Following hybridization, non-specifically bound probe was
washed off with varying stringencies of salt concentration and
temperature. The labeled probes, pre-reacted to disable repetitive
sequence hybridization, and the probes without such pre-reaction
were detected with rhodamine-labeled antibody to
digoxigenin-11-dUTP, using a conventional FISH protocol (Knoll and
Lichter, Current Protocol in Human Genetics, Vol. 1, Unit 4.3,
Green-Wiley, New York, 1994). Chromosomal DNA was counterstained
with DAPI. The cell preparations on microscope slides were then
mounted in antifade solution (such as Vectashield, Vector
Laboratories, Burlingame, Calif.) and visually examined using a
fluorescence microscope with the appropriate fluorochrome filter
sets. FIGS. 1 and 2 are photographs illustrating the results of the
comparative hybridizations, where FIG. 1 is the hybridization with
the blocking repetitive sequences, while FIG. 2 is the
hybridization without pre-reaction with purified repetitive DNA.
These photographs depict hybridization to both HIRA alleles on two
normal chromosome 22q11.2 regions. A comparison of the photographs
demonstrates that the presence of the blocking repetitive sequences
is unnecessary using the probes of the present invention.
[0093] The remaining three probes identified in Table 2 were
PCR-amplified and labeled as described above. These probes were
used in a series of FISH experiments to determine the efficacy of
the probes. Thus, all four probes were used together without
pre-annealing of potentially repetitive sequences (FIG. 6), and a
combination of the three shortest probes were used on cells from a
patient affected with DiGeorge/VCFS with a previously confirmed
deletion (FIG. 12). In the FIG. 6 photograph, the probe was
hybridized to a single region of both chromosome 22s in a normal
individual (arrows) In FIG. 12, only one chromosome 22 hybridized
(arrow). The other chromosome 22, as indicated by a star, has a
deletion of this region and does not hybridize to the probe.
Example 2
Development of NECDIN and CDC2L1 Gene Probes
[0094] The techniques described in Example 1 were used to develop a
series of probes for detecting known genetic disorders on
chromosome 1 (Monosomy 1p36.3 syndrome; Slavotinek et al., J. Med.
Genet., 36:657-63 (1999)) and on chromosome 15 (Prader-Willi and
Angelman Syndromes). Approximately 70% of patients with
Prader-Willi or Angelman syndrome exhibit hemizygous deletions of
the sequence containing the NECDIN gene (Knoll et al., Amer. J.
Med. Genet., 32:285-290 (1989); Nicholls et al., Amer. J. Med.
Genet., 33:66-77 (1989)). The presence of excess copies of this
gene is diagnostic for an abnormal phenotype in patients with
interstitial duplication or a supernumerary derivative or dicentric
chromosome 15 (Cheng et al., Amer. J. Hum. Genet., 55:753-759,
(1994); Repetto et al., Am. J. Med. Genet., 79:82-89, (1998)). The
following Table 3 sets forth the deduced single copy intervals, PCR
primer coordinates, SEQ ID Nos., and the lengths of the resultant
probes.
TABLE-US-00003 TABLE 3 Coordinates Forward GenBank Accession of
Longest PCR Primer Reverse PCR Primer PCR Primer SEQ Probe
Chromosome No., Chromosome Single Copy Intervals, Coordinates,
Coordinates, ID Nos., Length Gene Band Genomic Sequence
Beginning/End Beginning/End Beginning/End Forward/Reverse (bp)
CDC2L1.sup.1 1p36.3 AL031282 8823/17757 9137/9167 13960/13931
444/443 4823 CDC2L1.sup.1 1p36.3 AL031282 8823/17757 13028/13057
17752/17720 445/446 4724 NECDIN 15q11-q13 AC006596 94498/99152
94501/94535 98567/98601 439/440 4166 NECDIN 15q11-q13 AC006596
68031/75948 72122/72156 75666/75637 437/438 3544 NECDIN 15q11-q13
AC006596 76249/79221 76608/76639 78898/78867 441/442 2290 .sup.1Two
sets of primers were used to generate two DNA probe fragments
which, together, spanned the entire interval.
[0095] PCR-amplification was performed using the CDC2L1 primers in
Table 3, and products were labeled, hybridized and detected as set
forth in Example 1. The labeled probes were used in a series of
FISH experiments, with images of the hybridizations provided as
FIGS. 7-10. In the experiment shown in FIG. 7, the longest 4823 bp
probe was employed and potential hybridization repetitive sequences
was disabled by pre-annealing with purified repetitive DNA. As a
comparison, the same probe was used without pre-annealing of
purified repetitive DNA (FIG. 8). The hybridizations appear
identical demonstrating that the presence of purified repetitive
DNA to block repetitive sequence hybridization is unnecessary. In
both instances, the chromosomes with one or both chromatids
hybridized are indicated by arrows. In the experiments shown in
FIGS. 9 and 10, the 4823 bp and 4724 bp probes were employed, with
(FIG. 9) and without (FIG. 10) pre-annealing of the purified
repetitive DNA. Again, pre-reaction of the purified repetitive DNA
is shown to be unnecessary using the probes of the invention.
[0096] The NECDIN probes were also used in a series of FISH
experiments, as shown in FIGS. 3-5 and 11. These probes detected
DNA sequences between 36 and 62 kb distal of the NECDIN gene. The
3544 bp probe (SEQ ID Nos. 437-438) detected the 3' terminus of the
MAGEL2 gene. In FIG. 3, the 3544 bp probe was used on metaphase
cells from a normal individual, with pre-annealing using purified
repetitive sequences; FIG. 4 is a comparison, without
pre-annealing. In FIG. 11, all three probes were used in
combination, on metaphase cells from a patient affected with
Prader-Willi syndrome known to harbor a deletion of 15q11-q13
sequences on one chromosome 15. The normal homolog is indicated by
an arrow and shows hybridization to a single chromatid. The
location of the deleted chromosome is indicated by a star. It does
not show hybridization with the probe.
[0097] The foregoing examples demonstrate that the mixed
combinations of DNA fragments give identical hybridization results,
as compared with the fragments when used individually. This
establishes that none of the fragments used individually or in
combination will hybridize to any other location in the genome and
hence, are free of repetitive sequences. This provides an
additional confirmation of the validity of the present method for
the design and production of single copy genomic probes.
[0098] Current use of commercial and research genomic probes to
detect these disorders requires that hybridization of repetitive
sequences be disabled prior to annealing of the probe to metaphase
or interphase chromosomes. This increases the number of steps
required to perform the protocol and could potentially increase the
chances of procedural errors occurring, any of which would be
unacceptable in the clinical diagnostic laboratory. The results
present in FIG. 7 are comparable to those obtained using related
commercially available genomic probes to detect these
abnormalities. Hence, these probes will be useful in the detection
of these genetic disorders. The probes themselves or in combination
with other solutions necessary for hybridization and detections can
be provided to clinical laboratories as kits for detection of these
genetic disorders.
[0099] The probes developed from genomic sequences other than those
presented as examples cited herein can also be utilized to detect
inherited, sporadic, or acquired chromosomal rearrangements. These
rearrangements may correspond to numerous other known genetic
abnormalities (including neoplasias) and syndromes besides those
examples given above. Hence, the present invention can be useful
for producing probes from genomic regions for which probes are not
presently commercially available.
[0100] In principle, the present method can be utilized to design,
develop and produce single-copy genomic probes for any genomic
interval where the DNA sequence is available and where a
comprehensive set of repetitive sequence elements in the genome has
been cataloged. Such catalogs are currently available for genomes
for the following organisms (http://www.girinst.org): Homo sapiens,
Mus musculus, Arabidopsis thaliana, Canorhabditis elegans,
Drosophila melanogaster, and Danio rerio.
[0101] All references cited above are expressly incorporated by
reference herein. In addition, the subject matter of Disclosure
Document #471-449 filed Mar. 27, 2000, is also incorporated by
reference herein.
Sequence CWU 0 SQTB SEQUENCE LISTING The patent application
contains a lengthy "Sequence Listing" section. A copy of the
"Sequence Listing" is available in electronic form from the USPTO
web site
(http://seqdata.uspto.gov/?pageRequest=docDetail&DocID=US20100003684A1).
An electronic copy of the "Sequence Listing" will also be available
from the USPTO upon request and payment of the fee set forth in 37
CFR 1.19(b)(3).
0 SQTB SEQUENCE LISTING The patent application contains a lengthy
"Sequence Listing" section. A copy of the "Sequence Listing" is
available in electronic form from the USPTO web site
(http://seqdata.uspto.gov/?pageRequest=docDetail&DocID=US20100003684A1).
An electronic copy of the "Sequence Listing" will also be available
from the USPTO upon request and payment of the fee set forth in 37
CFR 1.19(b)(3).
* * * * *
References