KLF4 regulates adult lung tumor-initiating cells and represses K-Ras-mediated lung cancer.

ABSTRACT: Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality in both men and women worldwide. To identify novel factors that contribute to lung cancer pathogenesis, we analyzed a lung cancer database from The Cancer Genome Atlas and found that Krüppel-like Factor 4 (KLF4) expression is significantly lower in patients' lung cancer tissue than in normal lung tissue. In addition, we identified seven missense mutations in the KLF4 gene. KLF4 is a transcription factor that regulates cell proliferation and differentiation as well as the self-renewal of stem cells. To understand the role of KLF4 in the lung, we generated a tamoxifen-induced Klf4 knockout mouse model. We found that KLF4 inhibits lung cancer cell growth and that depletion of Klf4 altered the differentiation pattern in the developin

SUBMITTER: Yu T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4716302 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature