Molecular mechanism of MUC4/X mediated oncogenic signaling in PC tumorigenesis. Schematic diagram showing the oncogenic role of MUC4/X in PC. Ectopic expression of MUC4/X in PC cells resulted in elevated expression of integrin-β1 and increased adhesion to ECM thereby activating downstream FAK/ERK signaling along with cyclin A2 overexpression. Activation of this signaling cascade results in cell proliferation, adhesion, invasion, and metastasis. When the expression of MUC4/X is induced ectopically along with WT-MUC4, it also exhibited a similar aggressive oncogenic phenotype. Overall, overexpression of MUC4/X leads to enhanced aggressiveness of PC.