Bridging the molecular divide: alcohol-induced downregulation of PAX9 and tumour development

J Pathol. 2018 Apr;244(4):386-388. doi: 10.1002/path.5041. Epub 2018 Feb 26.

Abstract

The pathogenesis of oro-oesophaeal squamous cell carcinoma is causally linked to the consumption of alcohol. Beyond the carcinogenic effects of ethanol and its metabolites via DNA damage, the precise mechanisms by which alcohol drives tumourigenesis remain to be fully elucidated. A novel contributor now revealed is aberrant differentiation and proliferation mediated by suppression of PAX9, a key regulator of normal squamous maturation in oro-oesophageal tissues. Copyright © 2018 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Keywords: PAX9; alcohol; carcinogenesis; ethanol; oro-oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (OESCC); tumourigenesis.

Publication types

  • Comment

MeSH terms

  • Carcinogenesis
  • Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / genetics*
  • Cell Differentiation
  • Down-Regulation
  • Esophageal Neoplasms / genetics*
  • Ethanol
  • Humans
  • PAX9 Transcription Factor / genetics
  • United Kingdom

Substances

  • PAX9 Transcription Factor
  • PAX9 protein, human
  • Ethanol