Cholesteryl Ester Promotes Mammary Tumor Growth in MMTV-PyMT Mice and Activates Akt-mTOR Pathway in Tumor Cells.

ABSTRACT: The association between intratumoral cholesteryl ester (CE) and tumor progression has been reported previously. The objective of our study was to investigate a causal effect of CE on mammary tumor progression. Using MMTV-PyMT (MMTV-polyoma virus middle T) transgenic mice and breast tumor cell MCF-7, we show that both exogenous and endogenous CE can increase mammary tumor growth, that CE upregulates the AKT/mTOR pathway, and that CE synthesis blockade suppresses this signaling pathway. Our data suggest that SOAT1, a sterol O-acyltransferase, may be a potential target for the treatment of breast cancer.

SUBMITTER: Wei L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8228430 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature