Global and specific mechanisms stimulate mistranslation in cancer.

ADAR1 and FTSJ1 regulate tryptophan-to-phenylalanine mistranslation in cancer cells under tryptophan shortage, with ADAR1 supporting ribosome quality control and FTSJ1 promoting codon reassignments.

• Why it matters: Understanding how cancer cells adapt their protein synthesis machinery during immune responses is crucial, as mistranslation may influence tumor progression and immune evasion.
• What they did: The study screened for genes controlling W→F substitutants during interferon-γ-induced tryptophan depletion, identifying ADAR1 and FTSJ1 as key regulators through molecular and biochemical analyses.
• The result: Elevated levels of ADAR1 and FTSJ1 in many cancers suggest that these enzymes enable global and specific mistranslation mechanisms, potentially aiding tumor survival amid anti-tumor immunity.