Cancer Metabolism: Phenotype, Signaling and Therapeutic Targets

Aberrant metabolism is a major hallmark of cancer. Abnormal cancer metabolism, such as aerobic glycolysis and increased anabolic pathways, has important roles in tumorigenesis, metastasis, drug resistance, and cancer stem cells. Well-known oncogenic signaling pathways, such as phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT, Myc, and Hippo pathway, mediate metabolic gene expression and increase metabolic enzyme activities. Vice versa, deregulated metabolic pathways contribute to defects in cellular signal transduction pathways, which in turn provide energy, building blocks, and redox potentials for unrestrained cancer cell proliferation. Studies and clinical trials are being performed that focus on the inhibition of metabolic enzymes by small molecules or dietary interventions (e.g., fasting, calorie restriction, and intermittent fasting). Similar to genetic heterogeneity, the metabolic phenotypes of cancers are highly heterogeneous. This heterogeneity results from diverse cues in the tumor microenvironment and genetic mutations. Hence, overcoming metabolic plasticity is an important goal of modern cancer therapeutics. This review highlights recent findings on the metabolic phenotypes of cancer and elucidates the interactions between signal transduction pathways and metabolic pathways. We also provide novel rationales for designing the next-generation cancer metabolism drugs.

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Development of cancer metabolism as a therapeutic target: new pathways, patient studies, stratification and combination therapy

British Journal of Cancer ◽

10.1038/s41416-019-0666-4 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 122 (1) ◽

pp. 1-3 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Adrian L. Harris

Keyword(s):

Metabolic Pathways ◽

Trial Design ◽

Cancer Metabolism ◽

Aerobic Glycolysis ◽

Critical Role ◽

Therapeutic Approaches ◽

Preclinical Models ◽

Wide Range ◽

Patient Studies

AbstractCancer metabolism has undergone a resurgence in the last decade, 70 years after Warburg described aerobic glycolysis as a feature of cancer cells. A wide range of techniques have elucidated the complexity and heterogeneity in preclinical models and clinical studies. What emerges are the large differences between tissues, tumour types and intratumour heterogeneity. However, synergies with inhibition of metabolic pathways have been found for many drugs and therapeutic approaches, and a critical role of window studies and translational trial design is key to success.

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A Novel Therapeutic Target, BACH1, Regulates Cancer Metabolism

10.20944/preprints202101.0626.v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jiyoung Lee ◽

Joselyn Padilla

Keyword(s):

Cancer Cells ◽

Cancer Patients ◽

Transcriptional Activation ◽

Pyruvate Dehydrogenase ◽

Therapeutic Target ◽

Metabolic Pathways ◽

Cancer Metabolism ◽

Aerobic Glycolysis ◽

Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Kinase ◽

Migration And Invasion

BTB domain and CNC homology 1 (BACH1) is a highly expressed transcription factor in tumors including breast and lung, relative to their non-tumor tissues. BACH1 is known to regulate multiple physiological processes including heme homeostasis, oxidative stress response, senescence, cell cycle, and mitosis. In a tumor, BACH1 promotes invasion and metastasis of cancer cells, and the expression of BACH1 presents a poor outcome for cancer patients including breast cancer patients. Recent studies identified novel functional roles of BACH1 in the regulation of metabolic pathways in cancer cells. BACH1 inhibits mitochondrial metabolism through transcriptional suppression of mitochondrial membrane genes. In addition, BACH1 suppresses activity of pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH), a key enzyme that converts pyruvate to acetyl-CoA for the citric acid (TCA) cycle through transcriptional activation of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase (PDK). Moreover, BACH1 increases glucose uptake and lactate secretion in aerobic glycolysis through the expression of metabolic enzymes involved such as hexokinase 2 (HK2) and glyceraldehyde 3- phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH). Pharmacological or genetic inhibition of BACH1 could reprogramme metabolic pathways, subsequently rendering metabolic vulnerability of cancer cells. Furthermore, inhibition of BACH1 decreased antioxidant-induced glycolysis rates as well as reduced migration and invasion of cancer cells, suggesting BACH1 as a potentially useful cancer therapeutic target.

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PKM2, a Central Point of Regulation in Cancer Metabolism

International Journal of Cell Biology ◽

10.1155/2013/242513 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 2013 ◽

pp. 1-11 ◽

Cited By ~ 119

Author(s):

Nicholas Wong ◽

Jason De Melo ◽

Damu Tang

Keyword(s):

Protein Tyrosine Kinase ◽

Cancer Metabolism ◽

Kinase Activity ◽

Aerobic Glycolysis ◽

Active Form ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Atp Production ◽

Complex Regulation ◽

Rate Limiting ◽

Glucose Metabolites

Aerobic glycolysis is the dominant metabolic pathway utilized by cancer cells, owing to its ability to divert glucose metabolites from ATP production towards the synthesis of cellular building blocks (nucleotides, amino acids, and lipids) to meet the demands of proliferation. The M2 isoform of pyruvate kinase (PKM2) catalyzes the final and also a rate-limiting reaction in the glycolytic pathway. In the PK family, PKM2 is subjected to a complex regulation by both oncogenes and tumour suppressors, which allows for a fine-tone regulation of PKM2 activity. The less active form of PKM2 drives glucose through the route of aerobic glycolysis, while active PKM2 directs glucose towards oxidative metabolism. Additionally, PKM2 possesses protein tyrosine kinase activity and plays a role in modulating gene expression and thereby contributing to tumorigenesis. We will discuss our current understanding of PKM2's regulation and its many contributions to tumorigenesis.

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PDZ domains: the building blocks regulating tumorigenesis

Biochemical Journal ◽

10.1042/bj20110903 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 439 (2) ◽

pp. 195-205 ◽

Cited By ~ 62

Author(s):

Vanitha Krishna Subbaiah ◽

Christian Kranjec ◽

Miranda Thomas ◽

Lawrence Banks

Keyword(s):

Signal Transduction ◽

Cell Proliferation ◽

Cell Polarity ◽

Pdz Domain ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Signal Transduction Pathways ◽

Pdz Domains ◽

Binding Motifs ◽

Cytoskeletal Organization ◽

Specific Process

Over 250 PDZ (PSD95/Dlg/ZO-1) domain-containing proteins have been described in the human proteome. As many of these possess multiple PDZ domains, the potential combinations of associations with proteins that possess PBMs (PDZ-binding motifs) are vast. However, PDZ domain recognition is a highly specific process, and much less promiscuous than originally thought. Furthermore, a large number of PDZ domain-containing proteins have been linked directly to the control of processes whose loss, or inappropriate activation, contribute to the development of human malignancies. These regulate processes as diverse as cytoskeletal organization, cell polarity, cell proliferation and many signal transduction pathways. In the present review, we discuss how PBM–PDZ recognition and imbalances therein can perturb cellular homoeostasis and ultimately contribute to malignant progression.

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The Crosstalk Between Cell Adhesion and Cancer Metabolism

International Journal of Molecular Sciences ◽

10.3390/ijms20081933 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 20 (8) ◽

pp. 1933 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

Bárbara Sousa ◽

Joana Pereira ◽

Joana Paredes

Keyword(s):

Cell Adhesion ◽

Cancer Cells ◽

Cancer Metabolism ◽

Aerobic Glycolysis ◽

Redox Homeostasis ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Metabolic Reprogramming ◽

Special Focus ◽

Oncogenic Signaling ◽

Cell Cell

Cancer cells preferentially use aerobic glycolysis over mitochondria oxidative phosphorylation for energy production, and this metabolic reprogramming is currently recognized as a hallmark of cancer. Oncogenic signaling frequently converges with this metabolic shift, increasing cancer cells’ ability to produce building blocks and energy, as well as to maintain redox homeostasis. Alterations in cell–cell and cell–extracellular matrix (ECM) adhesion promote cancer cell invasion, intravasation, anchorage-independent survival in circulation, and extravasation, as well as homing in a distant organ. Importantly, during this multi-step metastatic process, cells need to induce metabolic rewiring, in order to produce the energy needed, as well as to impair oxidative stress. Although the individual implications of adhesion molecules and metabolic reprogramming in cancer have been widely explored over the years, the crosstalk between cell adhesion molecular machinery and metabolic pathways is far from being clearly understood, in both normal and cancer contexts. This review summarizes our understanding about the influence of cell–cell and cell–matrix adhesion in the metabolic behavior of cancer cells, with a special focus concerning the role of classical cadherins, such as Epithelial (E)-cadherin and Placental (P)-cadherin.

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Addressing cancer signal transduction pathways with antisense and siRNA oligonucleotides

NAR Cancer ◽

10.1093/narcan/zcaa025 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2 (3) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Rudolph L Juliano

Keyword(s):

Signal Transduction ◽

Signaling Pathways ◽

Small Molecule ◽

Cancer Therapeutics ◽

Future Research ◽

Signal Transduction Pathways ◽

Ras Signaling ◽

Cancer Signaling ◽

Challenges And Opportunities ◽

Cancer Signal Transduction

Abstract Signal transduction pathways play key roles in the initiation, progression and dissemination of cancer. Thus, signaling molecules are attractive targets for cancer therapeutics and enormous efforts have gone into the development of small molecule inhibitors of these pathways. However, regrettably, there has been only moderate progress to date, primarily in connection with the RAS signaling pathway. Oligonucleotide-based drugs potentially offer several advantages for addressing signaling pathways, including their exquisite selectivity and their ability to exploit both enzymatic and nonenzymatic targets. Nonetheless, there are problems inherent in the oligonucleotide approach, not the least being the challenge of effectively delivering these complex molecules to intracellular sites within tumors. This survey article will provide a selective review of recent studies where oligonucleotides were used to address cancer signaling and will discuss both positive aspects and limitations of those studies. This will be set in the context of an overview of various cancer signaling pathways and small molecule approaches to regulate those pathways. The survey will also evaluate the challenges and opportunities implicit in the oligonucleotide-based approach to cancer signaling and will point out several possibilities for future research.

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Signal-regulated oxidation of proteins via MICAL

Biochemical Society Transactions ◽

10.1042/bst20190866 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 48 (2) ◽

pp. 613-620

Author(s):

Clara Ortegón Salas ◽

Katharina Schneider ◽

Christopher Horst Lillig ◽

Manuela Gellert

Keyword(s):

Signal Transduction ◽

Hydrogen Peroxide ◽

Cell Death ◽

Redox Regulation ◽

Signal Transduction Pathways ◽

Cellular Functions ◽

Intracellular Signals ◽

Amino Acid Side Chains ◽

Specific Receptors ◽

Sulfur Containing

Processing of and responding to various signals is an essential cellular function that influences survival, homeostasis, development, and cell death. Extra- or intracellular signals are perceived via specific receptors and transduced in a particular signalling pathway that results in a precise response. Reversible post-translational redox modifications of cysteinyl and methionyl residues have been characterised in countless signal transduction pathways. Due to the low reactivity of most sulfur-containing amino acid side chains with hydrogen peroxide, for instance, and also to ensure specificity, redox signalling requires catalysis, just like phosphorylation signalling requires kinases and phosphatases. While reducing enzymes of both cysteinyl- and methionyl-derivates have been characterised in great detail before, the discovery and characterisation of MICAL proteins evinced the first examples of specific oxidases in signal transduction. This article provides an overview of the functions of MICAL proteins in the redox regulation of cellular functions.

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