title: Pathways involved in Drosophila and human cancer development: the Notch, Hedgehog, Wingless, Runt, and Trithorax pathway.
abstract: Animal models are established tools to study basic questions of biology in a systematic way. They have greatly facilitated our understanding of the mechanisms by which nature forms and maintains organisms. Much of the knowledge on molecular changes underlying the development of organisms originates from research in the fruit fly model Drosophila melanogaster. Vertebrate models including the mouse and zebrafish model, but also other animal models coming from different corners of the animal kingdom have shown that much of the basic machinery of development is essentially identical, not just in all vertebrates but in all major phyla of invertebrates too. Moreover, key elements of this machinery have been demonstrated to be involved in recurrent molecular abnormalities detected in tumor-tissue from patients, indicating their implication in the genesis of human cancer. Thus, research in this field has become a common topic for both biologists and hemato-oncologists. In this review, we summarize current knowledge on some of these key elements and molecular pathways such as Notch, Hedgehog, Wingless, Runt, and Trithorax that have been originally described and studied in animal models and which seem to play a major role in the pathophysiology and targeted management of human cancer.
authors.affiliation: 5th Department of Internal Medicine-Oncology/Hematology, Hospital Hietzing and Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Clinical Oncology, Vienna, Wolkersbergenstraße 1, 1130, Vienna, Austria. klaus.geissler@wienkav.at.
authors.forename: Klaus
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Geissler
authors.affiliation: 1st Department of Internal Medicine, Krankenhaus der Elisabethinen Linz, Fadingerstraße 1, 4020, Linz, Austria.
authors.forename: Otto
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Zach
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002868:Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004330:Drosophila / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D053823:Hedgehog Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D011495:Histone-Lysine N-Methyltransferase; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy; D051788:Myeloid-Lymphoid Leukemia Protein / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D011379:Prognosis; D051880:Receptors, Notch / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D051155:Wnt1 Protein / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D002868:Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D053823:Hedgehog Proteins; C497422:KMT2A protein, human; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D051880:Receptors, Notch; D014157:Transcription Factors; D051155:Wnt1 Protein; C080833:run protein, Drosophila; C512571:trx protein, Drosophila; C074622:wg protein, Drosophila; D051788:Myeloid-Lymphoid Leukemia Protein; D011495:Histone-Lysine N-Methyltransferase