Exome Array Analysis Identifies Variants in SPOCD1 and BTN3A2 That Affect Risk for Gastric Cancer

Background & Aims Several genetic variants have been associated with gastric cancer risk, although these account for only a fraction of cases of gastric cancer. We aimed to identify low-frequency and other genetic variants that determine gastric cancer susceptibility. Methods We performed exome array analysis of DNA in blood samples from 1113 patients with gastric cancer, collected at hospitals from 2006 to 2010 in China, and 1848 individuals without cancer (controls) undergoing physical examinations. Among 71,290 variants analyzed (including 25,784 common variants), 24 variants were selected and replicated in an analysis of DNA in blood samples from 4687 additional cases of gastric cancer and 5780 controls. We compared expression of candidate genes in tumor vs normal gastric tissues using data from TCGA and performed functional annotation analyses. An immortalized human gastric epithelial cell line (GES1) and 7 human gastric cancer lines were used to express transgenes, knock down gene expression (with small interfering RNAs), disrupt genes (using the CRISPR/Cas9 system), or assess expression of reporter constructs. We measured cell proliferation, colony formation, invasion, and migration, and assessed growth of xenograft tumors in nude mice. Results A low-frequency missense variant rs112754928 in the SPOC domain containing 1 gene ( SPOCD1 ; encoding p.Arg71Trp), at 1p35.2, was reproducibly associated with reduced risk of gastric cancer (odds ratio, 0.56; P = 3.48 × 10 –8 ). SPOCD1 was overexpressed in gastric tumors, and knockout of SPOCD1 reduced gastric cancer cell proliferation, invasive activity, and migration, as well as growth of xenograft tumors in nude mice. We also associated the variant rs1679709 at 6p22.1 with reduced risk for gastric cancer (odds ratio, 0.80; P = 1.17 × 10 –13 ). The protective allele rs1679709-A correlated with the surrounding haplotype rs2799077-T–rs2799079-C, which reduced the enhancer activity of this site to decrease expression of the butyrophilin subfamily 3 member A2 gene ( BTN3A2 ). BTN3A2 is overexpressed in gastric tumors, and deletion of BTN3A2 inhibited proliferation, migration, and invasion of gastric cancer cells. Conclusions We have associated variants at 1p35.2 and 6p22.1 with gastric cancer risk, indicating a role for SPOCD1 and BTN3A2 in gastric carcinogenesis.