Mouse Models Shed Light on the SLIT/ROBO Pathway in Pancreatic Development and Cancer

The SLIT/ROBO pathway is classically known for its role in axon guidance, and is frequently lost in pancreatic cancer, but the biology behind this is poorly understood. Two recent articles ( Nat. Commun. 2018;9:5082; Nat. Commun. 2018;9:5083) using mouse models show that SLIT/ROBO signaling is crucial to determine pancreatic cell identity during development and suppresses the stromal activation in disease, through divergent mechanisms. SLIT/ROBO proteins thus link development and cancer, but appear to have distinct functions in health and disease