Roles and mechanisms of aberrant alternative splicing in melanoma - implications for targeted therapy and immunotherapy resistance

Wanxian Chen; Deyi Geng; Jiasheng Chen; Xiaosha Han; Qihu Xie; Genghong Guo; Xuefen Chen; Wancong Zhang; Shijie Tang; Xiaoping Zhong

doi:10.1186/s12935-024-03280-x

Roles and mechanisms of aberrant alternative splicing in melanoma - implications for targeted therapy and immunotherapy resistance

Cancer Cell Int. 2024 Mar 10;24(1):101. doi: 10.1186/s12935-024-03280-x.

Authors

Wanxian Chen^#^{1

2}, Deyi Geng^#^{1

2}, Jiasheng Chen^#^{1

2}, Xiaosha Han^{1

2}, Qihu Xie^{1

2}, Genghong Guo^{1

2}, Xuefen Chen^{1

2}, Wancong Zhang^{1

2}, Shijie Tang^{1

2}, Xiaoping Zhong^{3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Plastic and Burns Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515000, P. R. China.
² Plastic Surgery Research Institute, Ear Deformities Treatment Center and Cleft Lip and Palate Treatment Center, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China.
³ Department of Plastic and Burns Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515000, P. R. China. zhongxiaoping6@foxmail.com.
⁴ Plastic Surgery Research Institute, Ear Deformities Treatment Center and Cleft Lip and Palate Treatment Center, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China. zhongxiaoping6@foxmail.com.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Background: Despite advances in therapeutic strategies, resistance to immunotherapy and the off-target effects of targeted therapy have significantly weakened the benefits for patients with melanoma.

Main body: Alternative splicing plays a crucial role in transcriptional reprogramming during melanoma development. In particular, aberrant alternative splicing is involved in the efficacy of immunotherapy, targeted therapy, and melanoma metastasis. Abnormal expression of splicing factors and variants may serve as biomarkers or therapeutic targets for the diagnosis and prognosis of melanoma. Therefore, comprehensively integrating their roles and related mechanisms is essential. This review provides the first detailed summary of the splicing process in melanoma and the changes occurring in this pathway.

Conclusion: The focus of this review is to provide strategies for developing novel diagnostic biomarkers and summarize their potential to alter resistance to targeted therapies and immunotherapy.

Keywords: Alternative splicing; Diagnostic biomarkers; Immunotherapy; Melanoma; Targeted therapy.

Publication types

Review

Abstract

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