Role of E2F1 in pancreatic cancer

Abstract

Pancreatic cancer is the deadliest of human cancers to date. The hostile nature of pancreatic cancer, mostly due to its tendency for early local and distant spread, is in due course responsible for poor diagnosis and reduced survival. Most of the pancreatic cancers are originated in exocrine glands. About 95% of these exocrine cancers are adenocarcinomas that affect the pancreatic ducts. Other types of pancreatic cancers include neuroendocrine cancers that arise in endocrine cells. But these provide extensive capillary networks for metastasis of tumor cells. Several computational approaches are employed to couple the gene expression measurements with a network of known relationships between gene products, like the NetRank algorithm similar to Google’s PageRank algorithm, to determine the marker genes that are better involved in clinical outcome prediction. One such marker genes are those that encode transcription factors. One important group is E2F transcription factor family. These regulate a varied range of cellular functions, which include cell differentiation, cell proliferation, and cell death. The current chapter focuses on the E2F1 transcription factor, its mechanism of regulating the cell cycle, and its role in apoptosis and metastasis in context with the devastating pancreatic cancer. The insights into the molecular mechanisms with further investigation and research may provide improved diagnostic and treatment options for this type of cancer.