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Updated: May 4, 2026
Characterization of In Vitro Differentiation of Human Primary Keratinocytes by RNA-Seq Analysis
Published on: May 16, 2020
Key differences identified between actinic keratosis and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma by transcriptome profiling
S R Lambert1, N Mladkova2, A Gulati2
11] Centre for Cutaneous Research, Blizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK [2] Cancer Research UK Skin Tumour Laboratory, Blizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.
Background:
Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) is one of the most common malignancies in fair-skinned populations worldwide and its incidence is increasing. Despite previous observations of multiple genetic abnormalities in cSCC, the oncogenic process remains elusive. The purpose of this study was to elucidate key molecular events associated with progression from premalignant actinic keratoses (AKs) to invasive cSCC by transcriptome profiling.
Methods:
We combined laser capture microdissection with the Affymetrix HGU133 Plus 2.0 microarrays to profile 30 cSCC and 10 AKs.
Results:
We identified a core set of 196 genes that are differentially expressed between AK and cSCC, and are enriched for processes including epidermal differentiation, cell migration, cell-cycle regulation and metabolism. Gene set enrichment analysis highlighted a key role for the mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway in cSCC compared with AK. Furthermore, the histological subtype of the tumour was shown to influence the expression profile.
Conclusion:
These data indicate that the MAPK pathway may be pivotal to the transition from AK to cSCC, thus representing a potential target for cSCC prevention. In addition, transcriptome differences identified between cSCC subtypes have important implications for future development of targeted therapies for this malignancy.
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