View Program - 63rd Annual Drosophila Research Conference

Chromosomal Instability (CIN), defined as an increased rate of changes in chromosome structure and number, is a feature of most, if not all, solid tumors. While CIN promotes the gain of oncogene-carrying chromosomes and the loss of tumor-suppressor-gene-carrying chromosomes in certain cancers, its impact on the biology of the cell and on the homeostasis of the tissue, as well as its role in tumorigenesis, are far from being fully elucidated. Our lab has generated an epithelial model of CIN in Drosophila, where the generation of highly aneuploid karyotypes drives cell delamination and cell death. Upon apoptosis inhibition, aberrant karyotypes promote a cell autonomous epithelial to mesenchymal (EMT)-like cell fate transition associated with a highly invasive behavior and the entry into a senescence-like state. I will present our most recent data on the genetic identification and functional characterization of the molecular mechanisms underlying these cellular behaviors and the leading role of aneuploidy in driving these behaviors.

Tissue Biology of Chromosomal Instability