title: Adaptor proteins and ubiquinators in TGF-beta signaling.
abstract: The emergence of research analyzing the TGF-beta signaling pathway and its role in stem cell plasticity and differentiation has been a source of new insights into multiple cancers. TGF-beta signaling mediator Smads are tightly dependent on modulation by adaptor proteins, such as ELF, SARA, filamin, and crkl as well as ubiquitinators, such as PRAJA and SMURFs. Despite widespread inactivation of the TGF-beta pathway in gastrointestinal tumors, only a fraction of sporadic tumors exhibit inactivating mutations in early tumor formation, which suggests a role for the modulation of TGF-beta signals by stem/progenitor cell proteins, such as ELF and PRAJA. Delineating these key interactions of the TGF-beta signaling pathway could yield powerful new therapeutics aimed at treating hitherto difficult to treat cancers.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Digestive Diseases, Department of Surgery, Medicine & Lombardi Cancer Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA. lm229@georgetown.edu
authors.forename: Lopa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mishra
authors.forename: Blair
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Marshall
mesh_terms: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta / Q000502:physiology*; D025801:Ubiquitin / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D054875:Ubiquitination / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D025801:Ubiquitin