PNECtumor · Mechanisms regulating pulmonary neuroendocrine cell (PNEC) growth and tumorigenesis

Mechanisms regulating pulmonary neuroendocrine cell (PNEC) growth and tumorigenesis

Lung neuroendocrine neoplasms (LNENs) account for 20-25% of all lung cancers and can be subdivided into high-grade carcinomas and low grade neuroendocrine tumors, carcinoids. Because they exhibit features of neuroendocrine differentiation, all LNENs are thought to arise from a rare lung cell population, called pulmonary neuroendocrine cells (PNECs). Despite their involvement in LNENs and their implication in a number of other respiratory diseases, PNECs are an understudied cell type. Their normal function is not well defined and relatively little is known about their contribution to cancer development and progression. The experiments performed for this MSCA Action were focused on the functional characterization of PNECs and the elucidation of the pathways involved in the transformation of this cell type during LNEN formation. One of the biggest barriers to studying PNECs has been the lack of tractable model systems that can be used to isolate and study this rare cell type. The objectives of the project were (1) to define PNEC heterogeneity and identify changes in gene expression associated with PNEC proliferation, (2) to define optimal conditions for PNEC expansion within a lung organoid culture system and (3) to use lung organoids to characterize key pathways involved in LNEN formation.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union