SERPINB3 induces the aggressive basal-like/squamous subtype and promotes invasion and metastasis in pancreatic cancer II

Pancreatic cancer is a heterogenous disease and consists of distinct subtypes. Here, we searched for candidate driver genes of the basal-like/squamous subtype, a more aggressive molecular subtype of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Through an integrated transcriptome analysis, we identified the serine/cysteine protease inhibitor, SERPINB3 (squamous cell carcinoma antigen 1, SCCA1), as being upregulated in the basal-like/squamous PDAC using a discovery and validation approach. SERPINB3 upregulation associated with decreased patient survival and a transcriptome profile indicative of the basal-like/squamous subtype. The goal of this study was aimed to identify SERPINB3 induced molecular signatures in PDAC. Overall design: RNA was isolated from PDAC cell lines (n = 8 Panc 10.05 ± SERPINB3, n = 8 AsPC-1 ± SERPINB3, n = 8 AsPC-1 SERPINB3 ± a MYC inhibitor, n = 8 Panc 10.05 SERPINB3 ± a MYC inhibitor, n = 8 BxPC-3 ± SERPINB3 knockout) using TRIzol method. The mRNA profiles of the above human PDAC cell lines were generated by deep sequencing using Illumina NextSeq.