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Review
. 2021 Oct 29;5(11):167-172.
doi: 10.15698/cst2021.11.258. eCollection 2021 Nov.

Mechanisms of YAP/TAZ transcriptional control

Affiliations
Review

Mechanisms of YAP/TAZ transcriptional control

Giusy Battilana et al. Cell Stress. .

Abstract

Dysregulated gene expression is intrinsic to cell transformation, tumorigenesis and metastasis. Cancer-specific gene-expression profiles stem from gene regulatory networks fueled by genetic and epigenetic defects, and by abnormal signals of the tumor microenvironment. These oncogenic signals ultimately engage the transcriptional machinery on the cis -regulatory elements of a host of effector genes, through recruitment of transcription factors (TFs), co-activators and chromatin regulators. That said, whether gene-expression in cancer cells is the chaotic product of myriad regulations or rather a relatively ordered process orchestrated by few TFs (master regulators) has long remained enigmatic. Recent work on the YAP/TAZ co-activators has been instrumental to break new ground into this outstanding issue, revealing that tumor cells hijack growth programs that are active during development and regeneration through engagement of a small set of interconnected TFs and their nuclear partners.

Keywords: AP-1; Brd4; Hippo; Mechanotransduction; YAP/TAZ; cancer; proliferation.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. FIGURE 1:
Model of the interactions between YAP/TAZ, partner transcription factors, epigenetic modulators and the basal transcriptional machinery (See text for details).

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