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American Association for Cancer Research, Cancer Research, 4(80), p. 747-756, 2020

DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-18-1590

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Netrin-1 and Its Receptor DCC Are Causally Implicated in Melanoma Progression

This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Abstract

Abstract Deleted in colorectal cancer (DCC), the receptor for the multifunctional cue netrin-1, acts as a tumor suppressor in intestinal cancer and lung metastasis by triggering cancer cell death when netrin-1 is lowly expressed. Recent genomic data highlighted that DCC is the third most frequently mutated gene in melanoma; we therefore investigated whether DCC could act as a melanoma tumor suppressor. Reexpressing DCC in human melanoma cell lines promoted tumor cell death and tumor growth inhibition in xenograft mouse models. Genetic silencing of DCC prodeath activity in a BRAFV600E mouse model increased the proportion of mice with melanoma, further supporting that DCC is a melanoma tumor suppressor. Netrin-1 expression was elevated in melanoma compared with benign melanocytic lesions. Upregulation of netrin-1 in the skin cells of a BRAFV600E-mutated murine model reduced cancer cell death and promoted melanoma progression. Therapeutic antibody blockade of netrin-1 combined with dacarbazine increased overall survival in several mouse melanoma models. Together, these data support that interfering with netrin-1 could be a viable therapeutic approach in patients with netrin-1–expressing melanoma. Significance: Netrin-1 and its receptor DCC regulate melanoma progression, suggesting therapeutic targeting of this signaling axis as a viable option for melanoma treatment.