TC10 regulates breast cancer invasion and metastasis by controlling membrane type-1 matrix metalloproteinase at invadopodia

During breast cancer metastasis, cancer cell invasion is driven by actin-rich protrusions called invadopodia, which mediate the extracellular matrix degradation required for the success of the invasive cascade. In this study, we demonstrated that TC10, a member of a Cdc42 subfamily of p21 small GTPases, regulates the membrane type 1 matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP)-driven extracellular matrix degradation at invadopodia. We show that TC10 is required for the plasma membrane surface exposure of MT1-MMP at invadopodia. By utilizing our new Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) biosensor, we demonstrated the p190RhoGAP-dependent regulation of spatiotemporal TC10 activity at invadopodia. We identified a pathway that regulates TC10 activity and function at invadopodia through the activation of p190RhoGAP and the downstream interacting effector Exo70 at the invadopodia sites. Our findings reveal the role of a previously unknown regulator of vesicular fusion at invadopodia, TC10, on the invasive potential of breast cancer cells during invasion and metastasis.