WIP1 promotes cancer stem cell properties by inhibiting p38 MAPK in NSCLC.

ABSTRACT: Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a small population of stem cell-like cancer cells that can initiate tumors in vivo, and are the major source of cancer initiation, relapse, and drug resistance. We previously reported that the p38 MAPK, through its downstream effectors MK2 and HSP27, suppressed CSC properties by downregulating the expression of transcription factors that mediate stemness in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells, and that despite unaltered total expression of total p38 proteins, the levels of activated p38 were reduced in NSCLC tissues. However, the mechanism underlying the reduced levels of activated p38 in NSCLC is unknown. In this study, we identified WIP1, a p38 phosphatase frequently overexpressed in cancer, as a suppressor of p38 in a pathway that regulates CSC properti

SUBMITTER: Deng K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7156655 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature