Nucleolar adaptation in human cancer

While the nucleolus was first observed over two hundred years ago, its role in human cancers is only now being appreciated. Long thought to be a static, ribosome-producing, subnuclear organelle, recent investigations have shown a more dynamic and adaptable side of the nucleolus. Containing not only proteins for the production of ribosomes but also newfound nucleolar oncogenes and tumor suppressors, mechanistic links between the nucleolus and cancer are now more evident. In this regard, much of the work from the past decade has focused on the ability of these proteins to promote and suppress tumorigenesis from the nucleolus. In this review, we will discuss how historical measurements of the nucleolus are being translated into contemporary studies of nucleolar dysfunction in human cancer.