SMARCAL1 is a dual regulator of innate immune signaling and PD-L1 expression that promotes tumor immune evasion. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38301646/)

These scientists did a study to understand how cancer cells can hide from our immune system. Our immune system is like an army that fights against germs and diseases in our body. When cancer cells have something wrong with their DNA, it can make our immune system attack them. But cancer cells have a way to protect themselves by making a special protein called PD-L1.

These scientists found a protein called SMARCAL1 that helps cancer cells hide from our immune system. They discovered that SMARCAL1 does this in two different ways. First, it stops the immune system from sending signals to attack the cancer cells. Second, it helps the cancer cells make more PD-L1 protein, which makes it harder for the immune system to attack.

To understand how SMARCAL1 works, the scientists did experiments with mice that had melanoma, a type of skin cancer. They found that when they removed SMARCAL1 from the cancer cells, the immune system could attack the cancer cells better. This means that if we can find a way to stop SMARCAL1 from working, it could help our immune system fight against cancer.

This study is important because it tells us that SMARCAL1 could be a target for new treatments for cancer. Scientists could develop medicines that block SMARCAL1, which would make it easier for our immune system to fight cancer. This could help many people who have cancer and improve their chances of getting better.

Leuzzi G., Vasciaveo A., Taglialatela A., Chen X., Firestone TM., Hickman AR., Mao W., Thakar T., Vaitsiankova A., Huang JW., Cuella-Martin R., Hayward SB., Kesner JS., Ghasemzadeh A., Nambiar TS., Ho P., Rialdi A., Hebrard M., Li Y., Gao J., Gopinath S., Adeleke OA., Venters BJ., Drake CG., Baer R., Izar B., Guccione E., Keogh MC., Guerois R., Sun L., Lu C., Califano A., Ciccia A. SMARCAL1 is a dual regulator of innate immune signaling and PD-L1 expression that promotes tumor immune evasion. Cell. 2024 Jan 25:S0092-8674(24)00010-2. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.01.008.