Not all cancer cells are alike. Find out how they respond to physical stress.

Rafaela Marocci Lima Pimenta, a recent BMS PhD student, along with Cara Skon Hegg, PhD, (Whiteside Institute for Clinical Research) and co-advisors Jon Holy, PhD, and Teresa Rose-Hellekant, PhD, published a new research paper in Acta Histochemica (Volume 127, Issue 2, June 2025, Article 152238), titled 'Mechanoresponsive patterns of KLF2, 4, 5, and 6 expression differ among subclones from a single mammary tumor.'

A number of Krüppel-like transcription factor (KLF) family members display mechanoresponsive behaviors, but their roles as mechanotransducers in tumorigenesis and metastasis are not yet well understood.  This study examined whether the expression of multiple KLFs in different subclones of breast cancer cells were responsive to rapid changes in the physical environment.  The results show that subclone-specific changes in KLF expression patterns are triggered by a reduction in cell tension, as well as following substrate disengagement and cell suspension. These findings reinforce the concept that multiple KLFs play important roles in the bidirectional evolution of cell behavior and the physical microenvironment in growing tumors.