The skin is a squamous epithelium that is continuously renewed by a population of basal layer stem/progenitor cells and can heal wounds. Here, we show that the transcription regulators YAP and TAZ localise to the nucleus in the basal layer of skin and are elevated upon wound healing. Skin-specific deletion of both YAP and TAZ in adult mice slows proliferation of basal layer cells, leads to hair loss and impairs regeneration after wounding. Contact with the basal extracellular matrix and consequent integrin-Src signalling is a key determinant of the nuclear localisation of YAP/TAZ in basal layer cells and in skin tumours. Contact with the basement membrane is lost in differentiating daughter cells, where YAP and TAZ become mostly cytoplasmic. In other types of squamous epithelia and squamous cell carcinomas, a similar control mechanism is present. By contrast, columnar epithelia differentiate an apical domain that recruits CRB3, Merlin (also known as NF2), KIBRA (also known as WWC1) and SAV1 to induce Hippo signalling and retain YAP/TAZ in the cytoplasm despite contact with the basal layer extracellular matrix. When columnar epithelial tumours lose their apical domain and become invasive, YAP/TAZ becomes nuclear and tumour growth becomes sensitive to the Src inhibitor Dasatinib.

Inactivation of APC is a strongly predisposing event in the development of colorectal cancer1,2, prompting us to search for vulnerabilities specific to cells that have lost APC function. Signalling through the mTOR pathway is known to be required for epithelial cell proliferation and tumour growth3-5 and the current paradigm suggests that a critical function of mTOR activity is to upregulate translational initiation through phosphorylation of 4EBP16,7. This model predicts that the mTOR inhibitor rapamycin, which does not efficiently inhibit 4EBP18, would be ineffective in limiting cancer progression in APC deficient lesions. Here we show that mTORC1 activity is absolutely required for the proliferation of APC deficient (but not wild type) enterocytes, revealing an unexpected opportunity for therapeutic intervention. Although APC deficient cells show the expected increases in protein synthesis, our studies reveals that it is translation elongation, and not initiation, which is the rate-limiting component. Mechanistically, mTORC1 mediated inhibition of eEF2 kinase is required for the proliferation of APC deficient cells. Importantly, treatment of established APC deficient adenomas with rapamycin (which can target eEF2 through the mTORC1 – S6K – eEF2K axis) causes tumour cells to undergo growth arrest and differentiation. Taken together our data suggest that inhibition of translation elongation using existing, clinically approved drugs such as the Rapalogs, would provide clear therapeutic benefit for patients at high-risk of developing colorectal cancer.

SummaryThe Adenomatous Polyposis Coli (APC) gene is mutated in the majority of colorectal cancers (CRCs). Loss of APC leads to constitutively active WNT signaling, hyperproliferation, and tumorigenesis. Identification of pathways that facilitate tumorigenesis after APC loss is important for therapeutic development. Here, we show that RAC1 is a critical mediator of tumorigenesis after APC loss. We find that RAC1 is required for expansion of the LGR5 intestinal stem cell (ISC) signature, progenitor hyperproliferation, and transformation. Mechanistically, RAC1-driven ROS and NF-κB signaling mediate these processes. Together, these data highlight that ROS production and NF-κB activation triggered by RAC1 are critical events in CRC initiation.

SUMMARY The roles of inflammatory cytokines and the immune response in cancer remain paradoxical. In the case of tumor necrosis factor (TNF), there is undisputed evidence indicating both protumor and antitumor activities. Recent work in Drosophila indicated that a TNF-dependent mechanism eliminates cells deficient for the polarity tumor suppressors dlg or scrib. In this study, however, we show that in tumors deficient for scrib that also expressed the Ras oncoprotein, the TNF signal was diverted into a protumor signal that enhanced tumor growth through larval arrest and stimulated invasive migration. In this case, TNF promoted malignancy and was detrimental to host survival. TNF was expressed at high levels by tumor-associated hemocytes recruited from the circulation. The expression of TNF by hemocytes was both necessary and sufficient to trigger TNF signaling in tumor cells. Our evidence suggests that tumors can evolve into malignancy through oncogenic Ras activation and the hijacking of TNF signaling.

SummaryMicroRNA deregulation is frequent in human colorectal cancers (CRCs), but little is known as to whether it represents a bystander event or actually drives tumor progression in vivo. We show that miR-135b overexpression is triggered in mice and humans by APC loss, PTEN/PI3K pathway deregulation, and SRC overexpression and promotes tumor transformation and progression. We show that miR-135b upregulation is common in sporadic and inflammatory bowel disease-associated human CRCs and correlates with tumor stage and poor clinical outcome. Inhibition of miR-135b in CRC mouse models reduces tumor growth by controlling genes involved in proliferation, invasion, and apoptosis. We identify miR-135b as a key downsteam effector of oncogenic pathways and a potential target for CRC treatment.