Cell polarity opposes Jak-STAT mediated Escargot activation that drives intratumor heterogeneity in a Drosophila tumor model
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ABSTRACT: In proliferating neoplasms, microenvironment-derived selective pressures promote tumor heterogeneity by imparting diverse capacities for growth, differentiation and invasion. However, what makes a tumor cell respond to signaling cues differently from a normal cell is not well understood. In the Drosophila ovarian follicle cells, apicobasal-polarity loss induces heterogenous epithelial multilayering. When exacerbated by oncogenic-Notch expression, this multilayer displays an increased consistency in the occurrence of morphologically distinguishable cells adjacent to the polar follicle cells. Polar cells release the Jak-STAT ligand Unpaired (Upd), in response to which, neighboring polarity-deficient cells exhibit a precursor-like transcriptomic state. These cells activate the Snail-family transcription factor Escargot (Esg), among several regulons that we identify using single-cell transcriptomics. We also ascertain a similar relationship between Upd and Esg in normally-developing ovaries, where establishment of polarity determines early follicular differentiation. Overall, our results indicate that epithelial-cell polarity acts as a gatekeeper against microenvironmental selective pressures that drive heterogeneity.
ORGANISM(S): Drosophila melanogaster
PROVIDER: GSE196885 | GEO | 2022/09/19
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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