MEN1 deficiency leads to neuroendocrine differentiation of lung cancer and disrupts the DNA damage response.

Qiu, Huan; Jin, Bang-Ming; Wang, Zhan-Feng; Xu, Bin; Zheng, Qi-Fan; Zhang, Li; Zhu, Ling-Yu; Shi, Shuang et al. · Nat Commun · 2020

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

The MEN1 gene, a tumor suppressor gene that encodes the protein menin, is mutated at high frequencies in neuroendocrine (NE) tumors; however, the biological importance of this gene in NE-type lung cancer in vivo remains unclear. Here, we established an ATII-specific Kras<sup>G12D/+</sup>/Men1<sup>-/-</sup> driven genetically engineered mouse model and show that deficiency of menin results in the accumulation of DNA damage and antagonizes oncogenic Kras-induced senescence and the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition during lung tumorigenesis. The loss of menin expression in certain human primary lung cancers correlates with elevated NE profiles and reduced overall survival.

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