2. Academic Validation
  3. POH1 facilitates pancreatic carcinogenesis through MYC-driven acinar-to-ductal metaplasia and is a potential therapeutic target

POH1 facilitates pancreatic carcinogenesis through MYC-driven acinar-to-ductal metaplasia and is a potential therapeutic target

  • Cancer Lett. 2023 Oct 14:216444. doi: 10.1016/j.canlet.2023.216444.
Tiantian Jing 1,  Xiaoli Xu 1,  Chengsi Wu 1,  Dianhui Wei 1,  Lili Yuan 1,  Yiwen Huang 1,  Yizhen Liu 2,  Boshi Wang 3
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 State Key Laboratory of Systems Medicine for Cancer, Shanghai Cancer Institute, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200032, China.
  • 2 Department of Medical Oncology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, China; Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China. Electronic address: aliuyz@126.com.
  • 3 State Key Laboratory of Systems Medicine for Cancer, Shanghai Cancer Institute, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200032, China. Electronic address: wbs137@shsci.org.
PMID: 37844756 DOI: 10.1016/j.canlet.2023.216444
Abstract

Pancreatic acinar cells undergo acinar-to-ductal metaplasia (ADM), a necessary process for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) initiation. However, the regulatory role of POH1, a Deubiquitinase linked to several types of Cancer, in ADM and PDAC is unclear. In this study, we investigated the role of POH1 in ADM and PDAC using murine models. Our findings suggest that pancreatic-specific deletion of Poh1 alleles attenuates ADM and impairs pancreatic carcinogenesis, improving murine survival. Mechanistically, POH1 deubiquitinates and stabilizes the MYC protein, which potentiates ADM and PDAC. Furthermore, POH1 is highly expressed in PDAC samples, and clinical evidence establishes a positive correlation between aberrantly expressed POH1 and poor prognosis in PDAC patients. Targeting POH1 with a specific small-molecule inhibitor significantly reduces pancreatic tumor formation, highlighting POH1 as a promising therapeutic target for PDAC treatment. Overall, POH1-mediated MYC deubiquitination is crucial for ADM and PDAC onset, and targeting POH1 could be an effective strategy for PDAC treatment, offering new avenues for PDAC targeted therapy.

Keywords

Acinar-to-ductal metaplasia; MYC; POH1; Pancreatic cancer.

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