Alternative splicing in EMT and TGF-β signaling during cancer progression

Epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a physiological process during development where epithelial cells transform to acquire mesenchymal characteristics, which allows them to migrate and colonize secondary tissues. Many cellular signaling pathways and master transcriptional factors exert a myriad of controls to fine tune this vital process to meet various developmental and physiological needs. Adding to the complexity of this network are post -transcriptional and post -translational regulations. Among them, alternative splicing has been shown to play important roles to drive EMT -associated phenotypic changes, including actin cytoskeleton remodeling, cellcell junction changes, cell motility and invasiveness. In advanced cancers, transforming growth factor- beta (TGF- beta ) is a major inducer of EMT and is associated with tumor cell metastasis, cancer stem cell self -renewal, and drug resistance. This review aims to provide an overview of recent discoveries regarding alternative splicing events and the involvement of splicing factors in the EMT and TGF- beta signaling. It will emphasize the importance of various splicing factors involved in EMT and explore their regulatory mechanisms.