Mechanisms of Hippo pathway in the pancreatic cancer

Abstract

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a lethal, aggressive, and incurable disease. The patients with PDAC are often diagnosed at the advanced stage, leading to poor overall survival because of no current effective treatment. Further exploration of the mechanism is needed urgently to provide insights on the prevention, detection, or intervention of pancreatic cancer. Oncogenic KRAS and mutated tumor suppressor genes serve essential roles in PDAC tumorigenesis. Different groups of scientists indicated that yes-associated protein and transcriptional coactivator with PDZ-binding motif, which are the main effectors of the Hippo pathway, are the center in the development of PDAC. Here, we will focus on the recent advances of the molecular mechanisms of core components in the Hippo kinases cascade and discuss their clinical implications.