Two-dimensional DNA electrophoresis identifies novel CpG islands frequently coamplified with MYCN in neuroblastoma.

BACKGROUND Amplification of the oncogene MYCN in neuroblastoma has been found to correlate with aggressive tumour growth and is used as a predictor of clinical outcome. The MYCN amplicon is known to involve coamplification of extensive DNA regions. Therefore it is possible that other genes are coamplified in this amplicon and that they may play a role in the poor outcome of MYCN amplified tumours. PROCEDURE We have implemented an approach for the two-dimensional separation of human genomic restriction fragments to detect and isolate as yet unknown amplified sequences in the MYCN amplicon in neuroblastoma. Using this approach we have recently cloned a novel gene referred to as NAG that is frequently coamplified with MYCN in neuroblastoma. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS We report here the identification and cloning of two additional CpG islands that are amplified in neuroblastoma. One contains a sequence that is identical to the first intron of DDX1. The other represents a novel CpG island that is associated with an as yet unidentified gene. We show that the novel CpG island is located in close proximity to the MYCN locus on chromosome 2 and is as frequently coamplified with MYCN in neuroblastoma as NAG and DDX1.