An engineered tumor organoid model reveals cellular identity and signaling trajectories underlying translocation RCC

Translocation renal cell carcinoma (tRCC) is a rare, aggressive kidney cancer primarily occurring in children. They are genetically defined by translocations involving MiT/TFE gene family members, TFE3 or, rarely, TFEB. The biology underlying tRCC development remains poorly understood, partly due to the lack of representative experimental models. We utilized human kidney organoids, or tubuloids, to engineer a tRCC model by expressing one of the most common MiT/TFE fusions, SFPQ-TFE3. Fusion expressing tubuloids adopt a tRCC-like phenotype and gene expression signature in vitro and grow as clear cell RCC upon xenotransplantation in mice. Genome-wide binding analysis suggests that SFPQ-TFE3 reprograms gene expression signatures by aberrant genome-wide DNA binding. Combining these analyses with single-cell mRNA readouts reveals a derailed epithelial differentiation trajectory that is at the root of transformation towards tRCC. Our study demonstrates that SFPQ-TFE3 expression is sufficient to transform kidney epithelial cells into tRCC and defines the trajectories underlying malignant transformation. Single-cell mRNA expression profiles of translocated renal cell carcinoma organoid models (both control and with engineered SFPQ-TFE3 gene fusion) were determined to study processes leading to oncogenic transformation. ------------------------- Authors state "Raw data are unavailable due to patient privacy concerns."