The Crohn's disease associated SNP rs6651252 impacts MYC gene expression in human colonic epithelial cells

PLoS One. 2019 Feb 22;14(2):e0212850. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0212850. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

Crohn's disease (CD) is a debilitating inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that arises from chronic inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified over 200 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that are associated with a predisposition for developing IBD. For the majority, the causal variant and target genes affected are unknown. Here, we investigated the CD-associated SNP rs6651252 that maps to a gene desert region on chromosome 8. We demonstrate that rs6651252 resides within a Wnt responsive DNA enhancer element (WRE) and that the disease associated allele augments binding of the TCF7L2 transcription factor to this region. Using CRISPR/Cas9 directed gene editing and epigenetic modulation, we find that the rs6651252 enhancer regulates expression of the c-MYC proto-oncogene (MYC). Furthermore, we found MYC transcript levels are elevated in patient-derived colonic segments harboring the disease-associated allele in comparison to those containing the ancestral allele. These results suggest that Wnt/MYC signaling contributes to CD pathogenesis and that patients harboring the disease-associated allele may benefit from therapies that target MYC or MYC-regulated genes.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Alleles
  • Chromosomes, Human, Pair 8 / genetics
  • Chromosomes, Human, Pair 8 / metabolism
  • Colon / metabolism*
  • Colon / pathology
  • Crohn Disease* / genetics
  • Crohn Disease* / metabolism
  • Crohn Disease* / pathology
  • Enhancer Elements, Genetic*
  • Epithelial Cells / metabolism*
  • Epithelial Cells / pathology
  • Gene Expression Regulation*
  • HCT116 Cells
  • HEK293 Cells
  • Humans
  • Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide*
  • Proto-Oncogene Mas
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc* / biosynthesis
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc* / genetics
  • Wnt Signaling Pathway / genetics

Substances

  • MAS1 protein, human
  • MYC protein, human
  • Proto-Oncogene Mas
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Peter and Marshia Carlino fund for Inflammatory Bowel Disease research. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.