SMAD4 suppresses WNT-driven de-differentiation and oncogenesis in the differentiated gut epithelium

The cell-of-origin of colon cancer is typically thought to be the resident somatic stem cells, which are immortal and escape the continual cellular turnover characteristic of the intestinal epithelium. However, recent studies have identified certain conditions in which differentiated cells can acquire stem-like properties and give rise to tumors. Defining the origins of tumors will inform cancer prevention efforts as well as cancer therapies, as cancers with distinct origins often respond differently to treatments. We report here a new condition in which tumors arise from the differentiated intestinal epithelium. Inactivation of the differentiation-promoting transcription factor SMAD4 in the intestinal epithelium was surprisingly well-tolerated in the short term. However, after several months, adenomas developed with characteristics of activated WNT signaling. Simultaneous loss of SMAD4 and activation of the WNT pathway led to de-differentiation and rapid adenoma formation in differentiated tissue. Transcriptional profiling revealed acquisition of stem cell characteristics, and co-labeling indicated that cells expressing differentiated enterocyte markers entered the cell cycle and re-expressed stem cell genes upon simultaneous loss of SMAD4 and activation of the WNT pathway. These results indicate that SMAD4 functions to maintain differentiated enterocytes in the presence of oncogenic WNT signaling, thus preventing de-differentiation and tumor formation in the differentiated intestinal epithelium.

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