Transcriptomic insight into the metabolism of two contagious cancers in the Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii)

Devil Facial Tumor 1 (DFT1) and Devil Facial Tumor 2 (DFT2) are two transmissible forms of cancer affecting Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii). While these tumours cause similar symptoms, they arose independently and differ in cell of origin. Previous in vitro work showed that, not only does DFT2 grow faster than DFT1, but DFT2 also outcompetes DFT1 in co-culture experiments. To understand DFT2s competitive advantage, we analysed the transcriptomes of three DFT1 and three DFT2 cell lines, as well as previously published transcirptomes of two DFT1 and two DFT2 tumour biopsies.