Genes encoding subunits of SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complexes are collectively mutated in ~20% of all human cancers1–2. Although ARID1A is the most frequent target of mutations, the mechanism by which its inactivation promotes tumorigenesis is unclear. Here, we demonstrate that Arid1a functions as a tumor suppressor in the mouse colon, but not the small intestine, and that invasive ARID1A-deficient adenocarcinomas resemble human colorectal cancer (CRC). These tumors lack deregulation of APC/β-catenin, crucial gatekeepers in common forms of intestinal cancer. ARID1A normally targets SWI/SNF complexes to enhancers, where they function in coordination with transcription factors (TFs) to facilitate gene activation. ARID1B preserves SWI/SNF function in ARID1A-deficient cells, but defects in SWI/SNF targeting and control of enhancer activity cause extensive dysregulation of gene expression. These findings represent an advance in colon cancer modeling and implicate enhancer-mediated gene regulation as a principal tumor suppressor function of ARID1A.

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Summary A large group of E3 ubiquitin ligases is formed by the multisubunit SCF complex, whose core complex (Rbx1/Cul1-Cdc53/Skp1) binds one of many substrate recruiting F-box proteins to form an array of SCF ligases with diverse substrate specificities. It has long been thought that ubiquitylation by SCF ligases is regulated at the level of substrate binding. Here we describe an alternative mechanism of SCF regulation by active dissociation of the F-box subunit. We show that cadmium stress induces selective recruitment of the AAA+ ATPase Cdc48/p97 to catalyze dissociation of the F-box subunit from the yeast SCFMet30 ligase to block substrate ubiquitylation and trigger downstream events. Our results not only provide an additional layer of ubiquitin ligase regulation but also suggest that targeted, signal-dependent dissociation of multisubunit enzyme complexes is an important mechanism in control of enzyme function.