Integrin-α10-dependency defines a novel therapeutic strategy targeting RAC and mTORC2 for metastatic myxofibrosarcoma

Analysis of U133A microarray data from 64 primary high-grade myxofibrosarcoma tumors identified ITGA10 as the gene most significantly associated with distant metastasis and poor disease-specific survival. Further investigation using shRNA knockdown identifies the TRIO-RAC-PAK and RICTOR-mTORC2 pathways as important downstream signaling pathways for ITGA10. RNA samples were prepared from 64 primary high-grade myxofibrosarcoma tumors previously frozen in liquid nitrogen. A portion of each tumor was placed in a cryomold and slides were cut for review by our pathologist to confirm the diagnosis in each case. Areas of normal tissue and necrotic tumor were macrodissected based on slide review. Only areas of viable tumor were included for RNA extraction.