SMURF1-mediated ubiquitination of ARHGAP26 promotes ovarian cancer cell invasion and migration

Abstract

Ovarian cancer: Suppressing the spread A member of a protein family known to suppress tumors could help tackle ovarian cancer metastasis. Ovarian cancer remains challenging to treat because the molecular mechanisms inherent in the disease are poorly understood. Hongping Li at Shenzhen Children’s Hospital, Yuanfang Zhu at Bao’an Maternity and Child Health Hospital, and co-workers showed that low levels of a tumor-suppressing protein, Rho GTPase-activating protein 26 (ARHGAP26), promote the invasion and migration of ovarian cancer cells. The team took tumor and healthy tissue samples from 85 patients and confirmed that reduced levels of ARHGAP26 in the cancerous tissues coincided with an increase in an enzyme involved in protein degradation. This enzyme-led destruction of ARHGAP26 may enable cancer metastasis. The team backed up their hypothesis by observing reduced cancer cell proliferation in mice with high levels of ARHGAP26.