The circadian gene Dec2 promotes pancreatic cancer progression and dormancy through immune evasion

Apr 29, 2026Developmental cell

The body’s daily rhythm gene Dec2 may help pancreatic cancer grow and hide from the immune system

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Abstract

Deletion of the circadian rhythm gene Dec2 from tumor cells significantly increased mouse survival after pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma resection.

  • Increased survival was linked to an immune-mediated mechanism, as benefits were lost in immunodeficient mice.
  • Dec2 is associated with promoting immune evasion by suppressing antigen presentation related to major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC-I).
  • The presence of Dec2 also alters the tumor microenvironment from low to high T cell infiltration, indicating a shift from immune cold to hot.
  • In vitro studies show that genes related to MHC-I antigen presentation exhibit circadian oscillation, a pattern disrupted by the deletion of Dec2.

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