BMP Signaling Promotes Neural Crest Identity and Accelerates Melanoma Onset

Currently, little is known about specific factors and pathways that act to initially promote neural crest identity during tumor initiation. Recently, GDF6-activated BMP signaling was shown to regulate differentiation and survival both in melanomas and during melanocyte development. Together, these results have implicated BMP signaling as a key regulator of neural crest and melanocyte programs in normal and pathologic states of the melanocyte lineage. However, it is unknown whether BMP signaling plays a role early in melanoma initiation and progression