Cancer Science & Therapy

Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma: Implications of Epigenetic Role Related the Src Pathway

Abstract

Padin-Iruegas ME, Eugenyeva E, Herranz-Carnero M, Aguín Losada S, Brozos Vázquez E, Abdullkader I, Antúnez JR, Ruibal-Morell A and López-López R

Epigenetic has become, in recent years, in a very important process in the control of several pathologies, including cancer. DNA methylation has been described in numerous studies as crucial for differentiation control, cell proliferation and invasion in cancer. Pancreas ductal adenocarcinoma is one of the most deadly diseases of our society; its complexity and variability have become one of the medical challenges of this decade. Combining the potential of epigenetic with the high mortality and the limited knowledge of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma origin, may result in new approaches for diagnosis, treatment and monitoring, crucial in this pathology. For this purpose, we analyzed genes involved in different cellular processes (GSTP1, p16, RASFF1A, RARβ2, CyclinD2, HIN-1, SOCS1, TIMP3, DAPK and TWIST1) in 61 cases of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. A first approach led us to analyze the Src pathway, never studied in this sense, as crucial in the development of this pathology. Clusters for clinicopathological characteristics and epigenetic profiles were obtained. The high degree of methylation of these adenocarcinomas, and the statistical relationship between Src pathway methylation and clinicopathological profile, has been postulated, for the first time. These results show the importance of this pathway in pancreatic disease, opening a new challenge for research and therapy.