Continuous exposure to doxorubicin induces stem cell-like characteristics and plasticity in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells identified with the SORE6 reporter.

Purpose: Cancer stem cells (CSCs) account for recurrence and resistance to breast cancer drugs, rendering them a cause of mortality and therapeutic failure. In this study, we examined the effects of exposure to low concentrations of doxorubicin (Dox) on CSCs and non-CSCs from TNBC.

Methods: The effects of Dox were studied using the SORE6 reporter system.

Targeting effector pathways in RAC1-driven malignant melanoma.

Malignant melanoma is characterized by mutations in a number of driver genes, most notably and . Recent genomic analyses revealed that 4-9% of sun-exposed melanomas bear activating mutations in , which encodes a small GTPase that is known to play key roles in cell proliferation, survival, and migration. The RAC1 protein activates several effector pathways, including Group A p21-activated kinases (PAKs), phosphoinositol-3-kinases (PI3Ks), in particular the beta isoform, and the serum-response factor/myocardin-related transcription factor (SRF/MRTF).