A New Cooperation between EZH2 and p38 Proteins Enhances Metastasis in Triple Negative Breast Cancer

The Celina Kleer lab at the University of Michigan Department of Pathology and Rogel Cancer Center has found a new mechanism that fuels metastasis in triple negative breast cancers. In their new study they show that EZH2, a master regulator of cell type identity, known to function through methylation of histones, has a new, unexpected function in aggressive breast cancers. By adding methyl groups to the p38 protein, EZH2 enhances the ability of breast cancer cells to spread to other tissue throughout the body, a process known as metastasis.