Investigating the metastatic potential of GM-CSF and Rab27a in KRAS driven pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

Undergraduates: Sukriti Bagchi, Dan Michaud Nancy Kren, Yuliya Pylayeva-Gupta

Faculty Advisor: Yuliya Pylayeva-Gupta
Department: Chemistry

---

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly aggressive malignancy with a consistently poor prognosis (with a <7% five-year survival rate). _x000D_ _x000D_ Oncogenic KRAS is the primary driver of PDAC, and has been previously shown to upregulate GM-CSF, a cytokine, contributing to a pro-tumorigenic, immunosuppressive microenvironment. Additionally, exosome secretion requiring Rab27a can also initiate formation of a pre-metastatic niche in organs distant to the pancreas (lungs and liver), priming them for tumor growth through similar immunosuppressive mechanisms._x000D_ _x000D_ This project aims to see if the silencing of either GM-CSF, Rab27a, or both can slow tumor growth, dampen the recruitment of immunosuppressive cells in the pancreas and distant organs, and reduce metastatic potential in PDAC. This could identify Rab27a and GM-CSF as potential targets for therapeutics, especially immunotherapy.