Abstract 3082: Leveraging 3D organoids to identify molecular changes underlying HNSC initiation and development

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSC) is a devastating disease accounting for 570,000 newly diagnosed cases and resulting in 344,000 deaths annually. HNSC arises from its histological precursor lesion, squamous dysplasia (HNSD); however, most patients are diagnosed with late-stage HNSC with no prior identification of pre-malignant disease. Earlier diagnosis and intervention could ameliorate the outsized burden of HNSC; therefore, there is an urgent unmet need to characterize the molecular changes underlying progression through HNSD to HNSC. To identify novel therapeutic targets or biomarkers that predict progression to HNSC, we have generated a three dimensional (3D) organoid library derived from dysplastic oral tissue harvested from mice treated with 4-Nitriquinoline N-oxide (4-NQO), a potent mimetic of tobacco smoke. Through RNA sequencing analysis of these organoids, we have identified two distinct gene expression states that accompany either early or late dysplasia. By performing gene set enrichment analysis of these two distinct gene signatures, we have identified c-Jun N-terminal Kinase (JNK) signaling as a potential biomarker that predicts or progression from HNSD to HNSC. Together, we have identified the salient transcriptional changes that accompany progression through the histological precursor lesion of HNSC. This study positions JNK signaling as a potential biomarker or therapeutic target for early intervention during the treatment of a deadly disease. Citation Format: Robert Agee, Samuel Flashner, Masataka Shimonosono, Andres Klein-Szanto, Hiroshi Nakagawa. Leveraging 3D organoids to identify molecular changes underlying HNSC initiation and development [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 3082.