Regulation of stem/progenitor cell maintenance by BMP5 in prostate homeostasis and cancer initiation

Tissue homeostasis relies on the fine regulation between stem and progenitor cell maintenance and lineage commitment. In the adult prostate, stem cells have been identified in both basal and luminal cell compartments. However, basal stem/progenitor cell homeostasis is still poorly understood. We show that basal stem/progenitor cell maintenance is regulated by a balance between BMP5 self-renewal signal and GATA3 dampening activity. Deleting enhances adult prostate stem/progenitor cells self-renewal capacity in both organoid and allograft assays. This phenotype results from a local increase in BMP5 activity in basal cells as shown by the impaired self-renewal capacity of -deficient stem/progenitor cells. Strikingly, gene inactivation or BMP signaling inhibition with a small molecule inhibitor are also sufficient to delay prostate and skin cancer initiation of -deficient mice. Together, these results establish BMP5 as a key regulator of basal prostate stem cell homeostasis and identifies a potential therapeutic approach against -deficient cancers.