RET is a sex-biased regulator of intestinal tumorigenesis
- bgtaylor1
- Nov 22, 2024
- 2 min read
Date: | 16 January 2024 |
PMID: | |
Category: | N/A |
Authors: | Sean T Koester, Naisi Li, Neelendu Dey |
Abstract: |
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Ret is implicated in colorectal cancer (CRC) as both a proto-oncogene and a tumor suppressor. We asked whether RET signaling regulates tumorigenesis in an Apc-deficient preclinical model of CRC. We observed a sex-biased phenotype: Apc Min/+ Ret+/- females had significantly greater tumor burden than Apc Min/+Ret+/- males, a phenomenon not seen in Apc Min/+ mice, which had equal distributions by sex. Dysfunctional RET signaling was associated with gene expression changes in diverse tumor signaling pathways in tumors and normal-appearing colon. Sex-biased gene expression differences mirroring tumor phenotypes were seen in 26 genes, including the Apc tumor suppressor gene. Ret and Tlr4 expression were significantly correlated in tumor samples from female but not male Apc Min/+ Ret+/- mice. Antibiotics resulted in reduction of tumor burden, inverting the sex-biased phenotype such that microbiota-depleted Apc Min/+ Ret+/- males had significantly more tumors than female littermates. Reconstitution of the microbiome rescued the sex-biased phenotype. Our findings suggest that RET represents a sexually dimorphic microbiome-mediated "switch" for regulation of tumorigenesis.
Acknowledgements:
The content of this article is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Cancer Institute, or the National Institute of Health.
The Translational and Basic Science Research in Early Lesions (TBEL) Research Consortia is supported and funded by grants from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health under the following award numbers:
Project Number: | Awardee Organization |
U54CA274374 | Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center |
U54CA274375 | Houston Methodist Research Institute |
U54CA274370 | Johns Hopkins University |
U54CA274371 | UT MD Anderson Cancer Center |
U54CA274367 | Vanderbilt University Medical Center |
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