The DEAD/DEAH box helicase, DDX11, is essential for the survival of advanced melanomas

Abstract

To date, little is known as to whether helicases play a role in melanoma development and specifically, in the progression from early to advanced melanoma. In this report, we show that the helicase DDX11 is expressed at high levels in primary and metastatic melanoma, and that interfering with its expression leads to severe chromosome segregation defects, telomere shortening, and massive melanoma cell apoptosis. These findings suggest that DDX11 could be an important candidate for molecular targeted therapy for advanced melanoma.