Prevention and Reversion of Pancreatic Tumorigenesis through a Differentiation-Based Mechanism (Developmental Cell)

Pancreatic cancer arises from mutations in exocrine acinar cells. Krah et al. demonstrate that preserving acinar cell identity protects these cells from oncogenic Kras-induced tumorigenesis. Furthermore, re-expressing the acinar differentiation gene Ptf1a in existing precancerous lesions in vivo, or human pancreatic cancer cells in vitro, induces quiescence and re-differentiation.