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As we begin 2013 it's time to take stock of what we do know and what we don't, and consider how best to approach finding new treatments for cancer. Do we embrace complexity or go back to basics?
Two papers providein vivoevidence for plasticity of epithelial and mesenchymal transitions, showing that EMT reversion is required for metastatic outgrowth.
A new study shows how angiogenesis may be controlled by epsin proteins, the targeting of which can result in a tumour-suppressive form of angiogenesis.
The loss of a component of the transcriptional mediator complex MED12 is implicated in resistance to a number of targeted and standard chemotherapeutic agents.
Using theDrosophila melanogastermidgut as a model of intestinal hyperproliferation, Julia Cordero, Owen Sansom and colleagues have identified non-cell-autonomous crosstalk among WNT–MYC, EGFR and JAK–STAT signalling pathways downstream of APC loss; importantly, this pathway may also operate in human colorectal tumours.
This Review highlights the complexity and context-dependent roles of both β-catenin-dependent and β-catenin-independent WNT signalling pathways in cancer, as well as some of the ways in which WNT signalling might be targeted therapeutically.
Oestrogen-related receptors (ERRs) have been shown to control vast gene networks that are involved in glycolysis, glutaminolysis, oxidative phosphorylation, nutrient sensing and biosynthesis pathways. This Review discusses these findings in the context of breast cancer and discusses whether targeting the ERRs for the development of cancer therapeutics is feasible.
Protein arginine methylation has various effects on cell signalling — targeting signalling proteins as well as histones — and the protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) are altered in various types of cancer, as discussed in this Review.
Ceramide induces apoptosis, autophagy and cell cycle arrest and it is therefore often metabolized in tumour cells to suppress its function and promote proliferation. As also discussed in this Review, there are efforts to increase ceramide levels as a therapeutic avenue.
Pancreatic cancer has the poorest prognosis of any major cancer type. Familial pancreatic cancer registries are important for investigating the genetic aetiology of this devastating disease and provide a unique opportunity for laboratory, population and clinical research.
