BMC Seminar - Isoform specific role of the autophagy protein ATG7 in cancer

Date: Thursday 14th of November at 12:00 in Árnagarður, room 201

Title: An isoform specific role of the autophagy protein ATG7 in cancer

Speaker: Clémence Larat, PhD student at the laboratory of Prof. Margrét Helga Ögmundsdóttir, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland.

Abstract: 
Autophagy is a pathway that degrades dysfunctional cell components to provide recovered materials. ATG7 is essential for autophagy initiation. ATG7 is known to have a role in cancer progression and metastasis and studies suggest that this role could be partially autophagy-independent. We identified a short isoform of ATG7, termed ATG7(2), which does not carry out the canonical autophagy function of the protein and is associated with poor prognosis in pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAAD). Additionally, ATG7 regulates YAP translocation to the nucleus, which is associated with poor prognosis in PAAD. Our in vitro analysis revealed that ATG7(2) drives PAAD cell proliferation and migration, and regulates numerous cell functions such as cytokines signalling, cell-cell interactions, extra-cellular matrix organisation and immune-checkpoint expression. Our data also suggests that ATG7(2) is a regulator of the Hippo pathway and promotes YAP nuclear translocation and activity. Unravelling the mechanisms of ATG7 function in cancer could provide new options for the treatment of PAAD.