Glutathione biosynthesis is a metabolic vulnerability in PI(3)K/Akt-driven breast cancer.

ABSTRACT: Cancer cells often select for mutations that enhance signalling through pathways that promote anabolic metabolism. Although the PI(3)K/Akt signalling pathway, which is frequently dysregulated in breast cancer, is a well-established regulator of central glucose metabolism and aerobic glycolysis, its regulation of other metabolic processes required for tumour growth is not well defined. Here we report that in mammary epithelial cells, oncogenic PI(3)K/Akt stimulates glutathione (GSH) biosynthesis by stabilizing and activating NRF2 to upregulate the GSH biosynthetic genes. Increased NRF2 stability is dependent on the Akt-mediated accumulation of p21(Cip1/WAF1) and GSK-3β inhibition. Consistently, in human breast tumours, upregulation of NRF2 targets is associated with PI(3)K pathway mutation

SUBMITTER: Lien EC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4848114 | biostudies-literature | 2016 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature