Characterization of the malignant melanoma of soft-parts cell line GG-62 by expression analysis using DNA microarrays

GG-62 is a cell line previously thought to be derived from an atypical Ewing tumor (ET). Reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction revealed an in-frame fusion between the Ewing sarcoma gene (EWS) codon 325 and the activating transcription factor 1 gene (ATF1) codon 65 which permits the production of chimeric EWS-ATF1 oncoproteins. We also identified the genomic breakpoint resulting from a reciprocal t(12;22)(q13;q12), which is the hallmark of malignant melanoma of soft parts (MMSP). We applied Affymetrix human cancer G110 arrays to compare the gene expression patterns of GG-62 and other cell lines derived from small blue round cell tumors of childhood. Hierarchical clustering of 463 differentially expressed genes distinguished GG-62 from the ETs, as well as the neuroblastomas, and revealed a cluster of 36 upregulated genes. Several of these genes are involved in signal transduction pathways that may be critical for maintaining cell transformation; some examples are avian erythroblastic leukemia viral oncogene homolog 3 (ERBB3), neuregulin 1 (NRG1), fibroblast growth factor 9 (FGF9), and fibroblast growth factor receptor-1 (FGFR1). Furthermore, genes near the chromosome-12q13 breakpoint exhibited increased expression of GG-62 including ERBB3, NR4A1 (nuclear receptor subfamily 4, group A, member 1), cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (CDK2), and alpha 5 integrin (ITGA5). Altogether our findings demonstrate the MMSP derivation of GG-62 and may shed light on the mechanisms of tumorigenesis in this rare disease.