Characterization of FRA7B, a human common fragile site mapped at the 7p chromosome terminal region.

Common fragile sites (CFS) are specific regions of the mammalian chromosomes that are particularly prone to gaps and breaks. They are a cause of genome instability, and the location of many CFS correlates with breakpoints of aberrations recurrent in some cancers. The molecular characterization of some CFS has not clarified the causes of their fragility. In this work, by using fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis with BAC and PAC clones, we determined the DNA sequence of the CFS FRA7B. The FRA7B sequence was then analyzed to identify coding sequences and some structural features possibly involved in fragility. FRA7B spans about 12.2 megabases, and is therefore one of the largest CFS analyzed. It maps at the 7p21.3-22.3 chromosome bands, therefore at the interface of G- and R-band regions that are probably difficult to replicate. A 90-kilobase long sequence that presents very high flexibility values was identified at the very beginning of the more fragile CFS region. Three large genes (THSD7A, SDK1, and MAD1L1) and two miRNA genes (MIRN589 and MIRN339) map in the fragile region. The chromosome band 7p22 is a recurrent breakpoint in chromosome abnormalities in different types of neoplasm. FRA7B is the first characterized CFS located in a chromosome terminal region.