Cancer Biology

HOXA9 promotes MYC-mediated leukemogenesis by maintaining gene expression for multiple anti-apoptotic pathways

1. Ryo Miyamoto
2. Akinori Kanai
3. Hiroshi Okuda
4. Yosuke Komata
5. Satoshi Takahashi
6. Hirotaka Matsui
7. Toshiya Inaba
8. Akihiko Yokoyama

• Curated by eLife

  Evaluation Summary:

  This manuscript is of potential interest to experimental haematologists studying initiation and maintenance factors in leukaemia. Overall, the study is well designed and the data is clearly presented. However, in some places the analysis lacks depth and technological sophistication, and the novel insights are limited without additional experimentation.

  (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. The reviewers remained anonymous to the authors.)

Reviewed by eLife

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on publication landscape in chimeric antigen receptor-modified immune cell research

1. Ahmet Yilmaz
2. Jianhua Yu

Reviewed by ScreenIT

Exosome component 1 cleaves single-stranded DNA and sensitizes kidney renal clear cell carcinoma cells to poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitor

1. Qi Xiao
2. Qiaoling Liu
3. Lina Wang
4. Na Wang
5. Kai Wang
6. Chengli Song
7. Qingkai Yang

• Curated by eLife

  Evaluation Summary:

  Targeting DNA repair pathway provides a novel approach managing malignancies and emphasizing the necessity of discovering biomarkers which could select patients who will benefit. In this research the authors performed comprehensive bioinformatic analysis and identified EXOSC1 as the endogenous source of mutation, which was then validated for its role in damaging DNA and could sensitize kidney renal clear cell carcinoma cells to DNA repair inhibitor. This research is innovative for proposing EXOSC1 role in mutagenesis and could serve as the biomarker to discriminate potential patients who would benefit from DNA repair inhibitor treatment.

  (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #3 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

Reviewed by eLife

Isoform-specific disruption of the TP73 gene reveals a critical role for TAp73γ in tumorigenesis via leptin

1. Xiangmudong Kong
2. Wensheng Yan
3. Wenqiang Sun
4. Yanhong Zhang
5. Hee Jung Yang
6. Mingyi Chen
7. Hongwu Chen
8. Ralph W de Vere White
9. Jin Zhang
10. Xinbin Chen

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  TP73 is a member of the p53 family of tumor suppressors. The authors provide compelling evidence that a TAp73-alpha to TAp73-gamma switch could be a frequent phenomenon in human cancers and provide novel evidence that TAp73-gamma has oncogenic functions via Leptin. The authors provide a substantial amount of high-quality data and convincingly demonstrate a novel function of this specific isoform of p73 in lipid metabolism and tumorigenesis.

Reviewed by eLife

Oxaliplatin resistance in colorectal cancer enhances TRAIL sensitivity via death receptor 4 upregulation and lipid raft localization

1. Joshua D Greenlee
2. Maria Lopez-Cavestany
3. Nerymar Ortiz-Otero
4. Kevin Liu
5. Tejas Subramanian
6. Burt Cagir
7. Michael R King

• Curated by eLife

  Evaluation Summary:

  The study investigates the molecular characteristics of chemotherapy-resistant colorectal cancer cells and proposes a therapeutic alternative for chemo-resistant cancer. The authors provide evidence in vitro that chemo-resistant cells are pro-apoptotic in the presence of the death receptor ligand TRAIL due to the enhanced localization of the death receptor DR4 in the lipid rafts of their plasma membrane. Based on this finding, the authors treat blood samples from 5 colorectal cancer patients with TRAIL-conjugated liposomes and observed reduction in the number of circulating cancer cells in the blood draws.

  (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. The reviewers remained anonymous to the authors.)

Reviewed by eLife

USP28 deletion and small molecule inhibition destabilises c-Myc and elicits regression of squamous cell lung carcinoma

1. E. Josue Ruiz
2. Adan Pinto-Fernandez
3. Andrew P. Turnbull
4. Linxiang Lan
5. Thomas M. Charlton
6. Hannah Claire Scott
7. Andreas Damianou
8. George Vere
9. Eva M. Riising
10. Clive Da Costa
11. Wojciech W. Krajewski
12. David Guerin
13. Jeffrey Kearns
14. Stephanos Ioannidis
15. Marie Katz
16. Crystal McKinnon
17. Jonathan C. O’Connell
18. Natalia Moncaut
19. Ian Rosewell
20. Emma Nye
21. Neil Jones
22. Claire Heride
23. Malte Gersch
24. Min Wu
25. Christopher J. Dinsmore
26. Tim R. Hammonds
27. Sunkyu Kim
28. David Komander
29. Sylvie Urbé
30. Michael J. Clague
31. Benedikt M. Kessler
32. Axel Behrens

• Curated by eLife

  Summary:

  This paper is of general interest to cancer biologists focusing on identifying new targets for cancer therapy particularly in the context of squamous cell lung carcinoma. The authors demonstrate that genetic ablation of the deubiquitinase USP28 reduces the growth of lung squamous cell carcinomas but not lung adenocarcinomas in a mouse model of lung cancer, and that that this restriction of growth is accompanied by loss of expression of several USP28 targets. They also describe activity of a new small molecule compound in controlling the growth of lung squamous cell carcinomas in mouse genetic and xenograft models, and reducing expression of USP28 targets. They demonstrate that USP28 is one target of the newly identified compound, but they do not establish whether it is the only and biologically relevant target of this compound.

  Reviewer #3 opted to reveal their name to the authors in the decision letter after review.

Reviewed by eLife

CDK4/6 inhibitors induce replication stress to cause long-term cell cycle withdrawal

1. Lisa Crozier
2. Reece Foy
3. Brandon L. Mouery
4. Robert H. Whitaker
5. Andrea Corno
6. Christos Spanos
7. Tony Ly
8. Jeanette Gowen Cook
9. Adrian T. Saurin

Reviewed by Review Commons

Signaling amplitude molds the Ras mutation tropism of urethane

1. Siqi Li
2. Christopher M. Counter

• Curated by eLife

  Evaluation Summary:

  This work helps explain some enduring mysteries about why certain activating mutations appear in the KRAS gene more frequently than others. This paper provides experimental support for an emerging concept within the Ras field that there is a sweet-spot of Ras signal strength that promotes tumorigenesis and that this explains why different mutations are observed in different contexts. The experiments are sound and the conclusions are fair. Given that certain KRAS mutations may be more amenable to therapeutic interventions than others, it is important to understand the basis for mutational tropism, and this work provides strong in vivo evidence that addresses this issue.

  (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 and Reviewer #2 agreed to share their names with the authors.)

Reviewed by eLife

A systematic CRISPR screen reveals an IL-20/IL20RA-mediated peritoneal immune crosstalk to prevent the ovarian cancer metastasis

1. Jia Li
2. Xuan Qin
3. Jie Shi
4. Xiaoshuang Wang
5. Tong Li
6. Mengyao Xu
7. Xiaosu Chen
8. Yujia Zhao
9. Jiahao Han
10. Yongjun Piao
11. Wenwen Zhang
12. Pengpeng Qu
13. Longlong Wang
14. Rong Xiang
15. Yi Shi

• Curated by eLife

  Evaluation Summary:

  The authors studied ovarian carcinoma and identified a potential role of interleukin 20 receptor subunit alpha (IL20RA) and of IL-20 in regulating the transcoelomic metastasis of ovarian carcinoma, where IL-20 signaling in tumors is protective. This leads to the production of IL-18 and an M1 macrophage phenotype, with reduction of metastasis. The study is of interest to investigators in the area of cancer and cytokines and has potential therapeutic ramifications.

  (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. The reviewers remained anonymous to the authors.)

Reviewed by eLife

An NKX2-1/ERK/WNT feedback loop modulates gastric identity and response to targeted therapy in lung adenocarcinoma

1. Rediet Zewdu
2. Elnaz Mirzaei Mehrabad
3. Kelley Ingram
4. Pengshu Fang
5. Katherine L. Gillis
6. Soledad A. Camolotto
7. Grace Orstad
8. Alex Jones
9. Michelle C. Mendoza
10. Benjamin T. Spike
11. Eric L. Snyder

• Curated by eLife

  Evaluation Summary:

  This manuscript greatly expands our understanding of an aggressive subtype of lung cancer. The author use in vivo cancer models and extensive analysis of the cancer cells states to uncover aspects of differentiation, drug responses and pathway activation. Findings of the study will help in the development of lineage-specific targeted therapies against cancers.

  (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #2 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

Reviewed by eLife, preLights