X and Y chromosome behavior in brain tumors: Pieces in a puzzle

Sex chromosome behavior in selected somatic cells is baffling. We serendipitously encountered this sex chromosome shuffle while studying malignant gliomas. Tumor specimens from 3/10 (30%) females and 15/27 (56%) males had sex chromosome abnormalities. Specimens from females showed X loss in 2 cases and possible X gain in 1 case. In 2 cases with autosomal abnormalities, only XX cells were found, suggesting that sex chromosome changes are independent of autosomal changes. Specimens from males showed Y rearrangements in 3 cases, Y loss in 15 cases, XX in 3 cases and autosomal abnormalities in 9 cases. The Y rearrangements may provide a route to Y loss whereas the advent of XX clones in male tumors bespeaks X isodisomy, a mechanism for adding an extra active X. The autosomal changes were rearrangements against a pseudo-diploid background in 5 cases and near-triploidy/tetraploidy in 4 cases. The cases with autosomal changes tended not to have sex chromosome abnormalities (p<0.01) and, the converse, cases with sex chromosome anomalies were without autosomal abnormalities (p<0.05). The process of sex chromosome changes appears independent of the process of autosomal changes. The conventional interpretation: the sex chromosome changes in brain tumors are in non-malignant cells. An unconventional interpretation: sexmore » chromosome changes represent an alternative avenue to malignancy.« less