Stat3 is required for the development of skin cancer.
Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Stat3) is a transcription factor that is constitutively activated in a variety of human malignancies, including prostate, lung, brain, breast, and squamous cell carcinomas. Inhibition of activated Stat3 leads to decreased proliferation and apoptosis of many cancer-derived cell lines, while the introduction of a constitutively activated form of Stat3 into immortalized human breast epithelial cells and rodent fibroblasts results in cellular transformation. Collectively, these data suggest a role for Stat3 in oncogenesis. A new study from Chan et al. is the first to demonstrate a requirement for Stat3 in de novo epithelial carcinogenesis in vivo. Using the two-step model of chemically induced skin carcinogenesis, the authors demonstrated that mice deficient in Stat3 were completely resistant to skin tumor development.
Pedranzini
Laura
L
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York, USA. bromberj@mskcc.org
Leitch
Andrea
A
Bromberg
Jacqueline
J
D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology*; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D050796:STAT3 Transcription Factor; D012867:Skin / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D015534:Trans-Activators / Q000378:metabolism*
D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D050796:STAT3 Transcription Factor; C494086:STAT3 protein, human; C494087:Stat3 protein, mouse; D015534:Trans-Activators