Zeb2 drives invasive and microbiota-dependent colon carcinoma

Slowicka, Karolina;Petta, Ioanna;Blancke, Gillian;Hoste, Esther;van Loo, Geert;et.al.
(2020) Nature Cancer — Vol. 1, n° 6, p. 620-634 (2020)

Files

2020_Slowicka_Nat_Cancer.pdf
  • Open Access
  • Adobe PDF
  • 38.09 MB

Details

Authors
  • Slowicka, Karolina
    Author
  • Petta, Ioanna
    Author
  • Blancke, Gillian
    Author
  • Hoste, Estherorcid-logo
    Author
  • Author
  • van Loo, Geertorcid-logo
    Author
Show more
Abstract
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is highly prevalent in Western society, and increasing evidence indicates strong contributions of environmental factors and the intestinal microbiota to CRC initiation, progression and even metastasis. We have identified a synergistic inflammatory tumor-promoting mechanism through which the resident intestinal microbiota boosts invasive CRC development in an epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition-prone tissue environment. Intestinal epithelial cell (IEC)-specific transgenic expression of the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition regulator Zeb2 in mice (Zeb2IEC-Tg/+) leads to increased intestinal permeability, myeloid cell-driven inflammation and spontaneous invasive CRC development. Zeb2IEC-Tg/+ mice develop a dysplastic colonic epithelium, which progresses to severely inflamed neoplastic lesions while the small intestinal epithelium remains normal. Zeb2IEC-Tg/+ mice are characterized by intestinal dysbiosis, and microbiota depletion with broad-spectrum antibiotics or germ-free rederivation completely prevents cancer development. Zeb2IEC-Tg/+ mice represent the first mouse model of spontaneous microbiota-dependent invasive CRC and will help us to better understand host–microbiome interactions driving CRC development in humans.
Affiliations

Citations

Slowicka, K., Petta, I., Blancke, G., Hoste, E., Dumas, E., Sze, M., Vikkula, H., Radaelli, E., Haigh, J. J., Jonckheere, S., Taminau, J., Vandamme, N., Wullaert, A., Tulchinsky, E., Nittner, D., Van Vlierberghe, P., De Hertogh, G., Baldin, P., Etlioglu, E., et al. (2020). Zeb2 drives invasive and microbiota-dependent colon carcinoma. Nature Cancer, 1(6), 620-634. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43018-020-0070-2 (Original work published 2020)