Cancer-associated transcription factors in DNA damage response

Transcription factors (TFs) constitute a wide and highly diverse group of proteins capable of controlling gene expression. Their roles in oncogenesis, tumor progression, and metastasis have been established, but recently their role in the DNA damage response pathway (DDR) has emerged. Many of them can affect elements of canonical DDR pathways, modulating their activity and deciding on the effectiveness of DNA repair. In this review, we focus on the latest reports on the effects of two TFs with dual roles in oncogenesis and metastasis (hypoxiainducible factor-1 alpha (HIF1 alpha), proto-oncogene MYC) and three epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) TFs (twist-related protein 1 (TWIST), zinc-finger E-box binding homeobox 1 (ZEB1), and zinc finger protein 281 (ZNF281)) associated with control of canonical DDR pathways.

Automated summary

Transcription factors play important roles in oncogenesis, tumor progression, and metastasis, and recent studies have found their involvement in the DNA damage response pathway. This review focuses on two transcription factors, HIF1 alpha and MYC, with dual roles in oncogenesis and metastasis, as well as three EMT transcription factors, TWIST, ZEB1, and ZNF281, associated with the control of canonical DDR pathways.