Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40859018›Full record

ArticleEMBO reports2025

STAT3 sustains tumorigenicity following mutant KRAS ablation.

Stephen D'Amico, Varvara Kirillov, Jingxuan Liu, Zhijuan Qiu, Xinyuan Lei, Hong Qin, Brian S Sheridan, Nancy C Reich

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in EMBO reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Stephen D'AmicoDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA.ORCID 0009-0004-6425-7822
Varvara KirillovDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA.
Jingxuan LiuDepartment of Pathology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA.
Zhijuan QiuDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA.
Xinyuan LeiDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-5049-6188
Hong QinDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA.
Brian S SheridanDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA.
Nancy C ReichDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA. nancy.reich@stonybrook.edu.ORCID 0000-0003-4367-6097

Funding

STAT3 is a Critical Regulator of Tumor Cell PlasticityR01CA236389 · NCI · STATE UNIVERSITY NEW YORK STONY BROOK · PI REICH MARSHALL, NANCY C. · 2019 to 2023
$2.2M
HHS | National Institutes of Health (NIH) RO1CA236389NCI NIH HHS R01 CA236389
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Oncogenic KRAS mutations underlie some of the deadliest human cancers. Genetic or pharmacological KRAS inactivation produces mixed outcomes and frequent relapse. Mechanisms of tumor resistance to KRAS inhibition remain poorly understood. We present evidence that STAT3 supports tumor growth following KRAS depletion. Using a conceptual framework of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, we show that cancer cells that survive CRISPR-mediated ablation of mutant KRAS are dependent on STAT3 function to maintain tumorigenicity. Mechanistically, the combined loss of mutant KRAS and STAT3 disrupts a core transcriptional program of cancer cells critical to oncogenic competence. This in turn impairs tumor growth in mice and enhances immune rejection, leading to tumor clearance. We propose that the STAT3 transcriptional program operating in cancer cells enforces their malignant identity, rather than providing classical features of transformation, and shapes cancer persistence following KRAS inactivation. Our findings establish STAT3 as a critical enforcer of oncogenic identity in KRAS-ablated tumors, revealing a key vulnerability.

Indexed as

CarcinogenesisCarcinoma, Pancreatic DuctalMutationPancreatic NeoplasmsProto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras)STAT3 Transcription FactorAnimalsCell Line, TumorCell Transformation, NeoplasticGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHumansMiceKRAS protein, humanProto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras)STAT3 protein, humanSTAT3 Transcription FactorKRASOncogene DependencePancreatic CancerSTAT3

Identifiers

PMID40859018
PMCPMC12549880

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.