Development of an immunosequencing panel for the assessment of minimal residual disease in dogs with B-cell Lymphomas

• Grant number: 21/09982-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: June 01, 2022
• End date: September 02, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Clinics and Surgery
• Principal Investigator: Heidge Fukumasu
• Grantee: Taismara Kustro Garnica
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos (FZEA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Pirassununga , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 23/05951-5 - Exploring genomic variation and immune repertoire diversity in different dog breeds through holistic genomic investigation, BE.EP.DR

Abstract

Lymphoma is the 3rd most common Cancer in dogs, having a wide variety of subtypes and behaviors. The B-cell Lymphomas represent 60-80% of cases, with diffuse large B-cell (DLBCL) the most frequent high-grade subtype (56%). Dogs diagnosed with high-grade Lymphoma are treated with the CHOP protocol (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone), which results in an 85% response rate. However, almost all treated dogs relapse during or after treatment and die due to disease progression, due to poor sensitivity in the methods of assessing therapeutic response and diagnosing remission. Added to this, there is still no methodology in Brazil for detecting residual tumor cells or Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) in veterinary oncology. Currently, liquid biopsy based on the use of ctDNA is one of the most promising tools for the assessment of response to treatment and monitoring of Cancer patients, enabling real-time monitoring of MRD in a non-invasive way. In addition, B-cell Lymphomas can be diagnosed and monitored by evaluating Immunoglobulin Heavy Chain (IGH) gene rearrangements. Thus, the objective of this project is to develop a technique that allows the monitoring of minimal residual disease in dogs diagnosed with B-cell Lymphomas submitted to the CHOP protocol based on an immunosequencing panel specific for canine IGH. (AU)