Spatial transcriptomics reveals heterogeneity and pathway dependencies of cancer associated fibroblasts in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

Caligiuri, Giuseppina, Thalappillil, Jennifer, Hinds, Juliene, Courtois, Elise T, Flynn, William F, Robson, Paul, Dobin, Alexander, Park, Youngkyu, Tuveson, David A (2022) Spatial transcriptomics reveals heterogeneity and pathway dependencies of cancer associated fibroblasts in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. In: Annual Meeting of the American-Association-for-Cancer-Research (AACR), APR 08-13, 2022, New Orleans, LA.

Abstract

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is a deadly disease characterized by an immunosuppressive microenvironment and a dense stroma that encapsulates the tumor, making therapeutic targeting particularly challenging. One of the main cellular components of PDA tumor microenvironment (TME) is cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs), whose function is to sustain tumor growth and provide structural support to the TME. Previously, we established the existence of three transcriptional subtypes of CAFs, myCAF, iCAF and apCAF, each with distinct functions and location in respect to cancer cells. Two of these subtypes, myCAF and iCAF, display a highly plastic potential in vitro and can transdifferentiate into one another upon activation of specific signaling pathways. The plasticity observed supports the existence of transitional CAF sub-states that have previously eluded observation due to technical limitations to their isolation. Through a combination of spatial transcriptomics and fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) on tumor samples obtained from KPC (KrasLSL-G12D; p53LSL-R172H; PDX-CRE) and FPC (KrasFrt-LSL-G12V-Frt; p53LSL-R172H; PDX-CRE; Rosa26FlpOERT2) mice, two PDA mouse models displaying a Kras G12D and G12V mutation respectively, we were able to confirm the presence of the previously identified CAF subtypes and two additional CAF sub-states. These sub-states are associated with the expression of specific markers and display different pathway enrichment. Notably, Kras G12D and G12V mutations generate similar organization of the stroma and heterogeneity of the CAF population. Subsequently, to understand the contribution of activating Kras mutation to these CAF phenotypes, we utilized the unique feature of the FPC mouse model which allows the excision of Kras G12V once the tumor has fully developed. Through FISH analysis, we observed deep reorganization of the stroma and a shift in marker expressions within the CAF populations upon Kras excision. Overall, the data here presented offers insight into the diversity of PDA CAFs and the role of mutated Kras in regulating CAF subtypes and stromal organization.

Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (Poster)
Subjects: diseases & disorders > cancer > cancer-associated cell types > cancer-associated fibroblast
diseases & disorders > cancer > cancer types > pancreatic cancer
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > transcriptomes
CSHL Authors:
Communities: CSHL labs > Tuveson lab
CSHL labs > Dobin Lab
SWORD Depositor: CSHL Elements
Depositing User: CSHL Elements
Date: 2022
Date Deposited: 19 Sep 2023 17:45
Last Modified: 19 Sep 2023 17:48
Related URLs:
URI: https://repository.cshl.edu/id/eprint/40914

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