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Phenotypic plasticity underlies local invasion and distant metastasis in colon cancer

Authors :
Arianna Fumagalli
Tong Xu
Roberto Stabile
Harmen J.G. van de Werken
Miriam Teeuwssen
Owen J. Sansom
Rosalie Joosten
Madelon Paauwe
Jacco van Rheenen
Berdine van der Steen
Inge Ubink
Won Kyu Kim
Onno Kranenburg
Andrea Sacchetti
Mathijs Verhagen
Martin M. Watson
Riccardo Fodde
Alem Gusinac
Pathology
Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery
Urology
Source :
eLife, eLife, 10:e61461. eLife Sciences Publications, eLife, Vol 10 (2021)
Publication Year :
2021
Publisher :
eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd, 2021.

Abstract

Phenotypic plasticity represents the most relevant hallmark of the carcinoma cell as it bestows it with the capacity of transiently altering its morphological and functional features while en route to the metastatic site. However, the study of phenotypic plasticity is hindered by the rarity of these events within primary lesions and by the lack of experimental models. Here, we identified a subpopulation of phenotypic plastic colon cancer cells: EpCAMlo cells are motile, invasive, chemo-resistant, and highly metastatic. EpCAMlo bulk and single-cell RNAseq analysis indicated (1) enhanced Wnt/β-catenin signaling, (2) a broad spectrum of degrees of epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) activation including hybrid E/M states (partial EMT) with highly plastic features, and (3) high correlation with the CMS4 subtype, accounting for colon cancer cases with poor prognosis and a pronounced stromal component. Of note, a signature of genes specifically expressed in EpCAMlo cancer cells is highly predictive of overall survival in tumors other than CMS4, thus highlighting the relevance of quasi-mesenchymal tumor cells across the spectrum of colon cancers. Enhanced Wnt and the downstream EMT activation represent key events in eliciting phenotypic plasticity along the invasive front of primary colon carcinomas. Distinct sets of epithelial and mesenchymal genes define transcriptional trajectories through which state transitions arise. pEMT cells, often earmarked by the extracellular matrix glycoprotein SPARC together with nuclear ZEB1 and β-catenin along the invasive front of primary colon carcinomas, are predicted to represent the origin of these (de)differentiation routes through biologically distinct cellular states and to underlie the phenotypic plasticity of colon cancer cells.

Details

ISSN :
2050084X
Volume :
10
Database :
OpenAIRE
Journal :
eLife
Accession number :
edsair.doi.dedup.....7c806c0a386ddde804b401f8c7419756
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.7554/elife.61461