ADAR1 editing dependency in triple-negative breast cancer

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the deadliest form of breast cancer. Unlike other types of breast cancer that can be effectively treated by targeted therapies, no such targeted therapy exists for all TNBC patients. The ADAR1 enzyme carries out A-to-I editing of RNA to prevent sensing of cellular double-stranded RNAs (dsRNA). ADAR1 is highly expressed in breast cancer including TNBC. Here, we demonstrate that ADAR1 expression and editing activity is required in TNBC cell lines but not in ER+ and/or Her2+ cells. In TNBC cells, knockdown of ADAR1 attenuates proliferation and tumorigenesis. PKR expression is elevated in TNBC and its activity is induced upon ADAR1-knockdown, which correlates with a decrease in translation. ADAR1-dependent TNBC cell lines also exhibit elevated IFN stimulated gene expression. IFNAR1 reduction significantly rescues the proliferative defects of ADAR1 loss. These findings establish ADAR1 as a novel therapeutic target for TNBC tumors.