Identification of cancer genes that are independent of dominant proliferation and lineage programs

Authors:
Open Access
Publisher website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Significance: Large, multidimensional “landscaping” projects have provided datasets that can be mined to identify potential targets for subgroups of tumors. Here, we analyzed genomic and transcriptomic data from human breast tumors to identify genes whose expression is enriched in tumors harboring specific genetic alterations. However, this analysis revealed that two other factors, proliferation rate and tumor lineage, are more dominant factors in shaping tumor transcriptional programs than genetic alterations. This discovery shifted our attention to identifying genes that are independent of the dominant proliferation and lineage programs. A small subset of these genes represents candidate targets for combination cancer therapies because they are druggable, maintained after treatment with chemotherapy, essential for cell line survival, and elevated in drug-resistant stem-like cancer cells.
Funding Information
  • American Cancer Society (124523-PF-13-110-01-CCG)

This publication has 65 references indexed in Scilit: