New insights in melanoma metastasis.

Metastases are the major cause of death from melanoma, a skin cancer that has the fastest rising incidence of any malignancy in the Western world. Molecular pathways that drive melanoblast migration in development are believed to underpin the movement and ultimately the metastasis of melanoma. Here, Dr. Friedrich Beermann (ISREC-SV), in collaboration with researchers from UK, Ireland, USA, Canada and France, show that mice lacking P-Rex1, a Rac-specific Rho GTPase guanine nucleotide exchange factor, have a melanoblast migration defect during development evidenced by a white belly. Moreover, these P-Rex1−/− mice are resistant to metastasis when crossed to a murine model of melanoma. Mechanistically, this is associated with P-Rex1 driving invasion in a Rac-dependent manner. P-Rex1 is elevated in the majority of human melanoma cell lines and tumour tissue. They conclude that P-Rex1 has an important role in melanoblast migration and cancer progression to metastasis in mice and humans.

Colin R. Lindsay et al., Nature Communications 2, Article number: 555 doi:10.1038/ncomms1560 (2011)