GPER is a mechanoregulator of pancreatic stellate cells and the tumor microenvironment
File(s)Cortes et al EMBOR 2018-1.pdf (2.67 MB)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
The mechanical properties of the tumor microenvironment are emerging as attractive targets for the development of therapies. Tamoxifen, an agonist of the G protein-coupled estrogen receptor (GPER), is widely used to treat estrogen-positive breast cancer. Here, we show that tamoxifen mechanically reprograms the tumor microenvironment through a newly identified GPER-mediated mechanism. Tamoxifen inhibits the myofibroblastic differentiation of pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs) in the tumor microenvironment of pancreatic cancer in an acto-myosin-dependent manner via RhoA-mediated contractility, YAP deactivation, and GPER signaling. This hampers the ability of PSCs to remodel the extracellular matrix and to promote cancer cell invasion. Tamoxifen also reduces the recruitment and polarization to the M2 phenotype of tumor-associated macrophages. Our results highlight GPER as a mechanical regulator of the tumor microenvironment that targets the three hallmarks of pancreatic cancer: desmoplasia, inflammation, and immune suppression. The well-established safety of tamoxifen in clinics may offer the possibility to redirect the singular focus of tamoxifen on the cancer cells to the greater tumor microenvironment and lead a new strategy of drug repurposing.
Date Issued
2019-01-01
Date Acceptance
2018-10-23
Citation
EMBO Reports, 2019, 20 (1)
ISSN
1469-221X
Publisher
EMBO Press
Journal / Book Title
EMBO Reports
Volume
20
Issue
1
Copyright Statement
© 2018 The Authors. Published under the terms of the CC BY 4.0 license. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Sponsor
Commission of the European Communities
Identifier
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30538117
PII: embr.201846556
Grant Number
282051
Subjects
GPER
RhoA signaling
mechanotransduction
tamoxifen
tumor microenvironment
Publication Status
Published
Coverage Spatial
England
Article Number
e46556
Date Publish Online
2018-12-11