EFFECTS OF P-REX1 OVEREXPRESSION ON MAMMARY DEVELOPMENT AND CANCER

P-Rex1 is a protein which show negligible expression in normal breast tissue but is upregulated in the luminal subtype of breast cancer. This thesis examined the effects of increased P-Rex1 expression in mammary epithelial cells of mice and demonstrated that P-Rex1 can play a causal role in driving mammary tumour development. Furthermore, expression of P-Rex1 in the mammary gland of a mouse model of breast cancer increased mammary tumour incidence and metastasis. These findings provide in vivo evidence that P-Rex1 plays an oncogenic role in breast cancer and suggest that targeting P-Rex1-regulated molecular signalling pathways may offer therapeutic benefits.