Targeting GLI Transcription Factors in Cancer.
Aberrant activation of hedgehog (Hh) signaling has been observed in a wide variety of tumors and accounts for more than 25% of human cancer deaths. Inhibitors targeting the Hh signal transducer Smoothened (SMO) are widely used and display a good initial efficacy in patients suffering from basal cell carcinoma (BCC); however, a large number of patients relapse. Though SMO mutations may explain acquired therapy resistance, a growing body of evidence suggests that the non-canonical, SMO-independent activation of the Hh pathway in BCC patients can also account for this adverse effect. In this review, we highlight the importance of glioma-associated oncogene (GLI) transcription factors (the main downstream effectors of the canonical and the non-canonical Hh cascade) and their putative role in the regulation of multiple oncogenic signaling pathways. Moreover, we discuss the contribution of the Hh signaling to malignant transformation and propose GLIs as central hubs in tumor signaling networks and thus attractive molecular targets in anti-cancer therapies.
['Didiasova|Miroslava|M|', 'Schaefer|Liliana|L|0000-0002-3318-3005', 'Wygrecka|Malgorzata|M|']
D000818:Animals D000970:Antineoplastic Agents D002471:Cell Transformation, Neoplastic D053823:Hedgehog Proteins D006801:Humans D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy D009369:Neoplasms D014411:Neoplastic Stem Cells D015398:Signal Transduction D014157:Transcription Factors D000071676:Zinc Finger Protein GLI1
cancer GLI inhibitors cancer stem cells glioma-associated oncogene homolog hedgehog signaling