YAP-driven malignant reprogramming of oral epithelial stem cells at single cell resolution.

Tumor initiation represents the first step in tumorigenesis during which normal progenitor cells undergo cell fate transition to cancer. Capturing this process as it occurs in vivo, however, remains elusive. Here we employ spatiotemporally controlled oncogene activation and tumor suppressor inhibition together with multiomics to unveil the processes underlying oral epithelial progenitor cell reprogramming into tumor initiating cells at single cell resolution.

Tumor-Targeted Cell-Penetrating Peptides Reveal That Monomethyl Auristatin E Temporally Modulates the Tumor Immune Microenvironment.

Chemotherapies remain standard therapy for cancers but have limited efficacy and cause significant side effects, highlighting the need for targeted approaches. In the progression of cancer, tumors increase matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activity. Leveraging and therapeutically redirecting tumor MMPs through activatable cell-penetrating peptide (ACPP) technology offers new approaches for tumor-selective drug delivery and for studying how drug payloads engage the tumor immune microenvironment.

Dual inhibition of HERs and PD-1 counteract resistance in KRAS-mutant head and neck cancer.

Background: Basket clinical trials targeting the KRAS-mutation in solid tumors have shown initial promise, including in orphan KRAS head and neck cancer (HNC). However, development of resistance to KRAS-mutant-specific inhibitors (KRASi) remains a major obstacle. Here, we investigated the intrinsic (tumor-cell autonomus) and tumor-microenvironment (TME) mechanisms of resistance to the KRASi-MRTX849 and AMG510 in a unique syngenic murine KRAS-mutated HNC cell line.

Oncogenic HRAS Induces Metformin Resistance in Head and Neck Cancer by Promoting Glycolytic Metabolism.

Metformin administration has recently emerged as a candidate strategy for the prevention of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). However, the intricate relationship between genetic alterations in HNSCC and metformin sensitivity is still poorly understood, which prevents the stratification of patients, harboring oral premalignant lesions that may benefit from the chemopreventive activity of metformin. In this study, we investigate the impact of prevalent mutations in HNSCC on response to metformin.