Glutamine Anabolism Plays a Critical Role in Pancreatic Cancer by Coupling Carbon and Nitrogen Metabolism

Bott, A. J., Shen, J., Tonelli, C., Zhan, L., Sivaram, N., Jiang, Y. P., Yu, X., Bhatt, V., Chiles, E., Zhong, H., Maimouni, S., Dai, W., Velasquez, S., Pan, J. A., Muthalagu, N., Morton, J., Anthony, T. G., Feng, H., Lamers, W. H., Murphy, D. J., Guo, J. Y., Jin, J., Crawford, H. C., Zhang, L., White, E., Lin, R. Z., Su, X., Tuveson, D. A., Zong, W. X. (October 2019) Glutamine Anabolism Plays a Critical Role in Pancreatic Cancer by Coupling Carbon and Nitrogen Metabolism. Cell Rep, 29 (5). 1287-1298.e6.

[thumbnail of Tuveson_CellRep_2019.pdf]
Preview
PDF
Tuveson_CellRep_2019.pdf - Published Version

Download (5MB) | Preview
URL: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31665640
DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2019.09.056

Abstract

Glutamine is thought to play an important role in cancer cells by being deaminated via glutaminolysis to alpha-ketoglutarate (aKG) to fuel the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. Supporting this notion, aKG supplementation can restore growth/survival of glutamine-deprived cells. However, pancreatic cancers are often poorly vascularized and limited in glutamine supply, in alignment with recent concerns on the significance of glutaminolysis in pancreatic cancer. Here, we show that aKG-mediated rescue of glutamine-deprived pancreatic ductal carcinoma (PDAC) cells requires glutamate ammonia ligase (GLUL), the enzyme responsible for de novo glutamine synthesis. GLUL-deficient PDAC cells are capable of the TCA cycle but defective in aKG-coupled glutamine biosynthesis and subsequent nitrogen anabolic processes. Importantly, GLUL expression is elevated in pancreatic cancer patient samples and in mouse PDAC models. GLUL ablation suppresses the development of Kras(G12D)-driven murine PDAC. Therefore, GLUL-mediated glutamine biosynthesis couples the TCA cycle with nitrogen anabolism and plays a critical role in PDAC.

Item Type: Paper
Subjects: bioinformatics
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification
diseases & disorders
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics
diseases & disorders > neoplasms
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification
organism description > animal
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell functions
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell types > cell line
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell types > cell line
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell types > cell line
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell functions > cell proliferation
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell types
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell types
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell types
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification > protein types > enzymes
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > genes, structure and function > gene expression
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > genes, structure and function
organism description > animal > mammal
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > organs types and functions > metabolism
organism description > animal > mammal > rodent > mouse
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions
diseases & disorders > cancer > cancer types > pancreatic cancer
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification > protein types
organism description > animal > mammal > rodent
CSHL Authors:
Communities: CSHL Cancer Center Program > Cellular Communication in Cancer Program
CSHL labs > Tuveson lab
CSHL Cancer Center Shared Resources > Animal Shared Resource
Depositing User: Matthew Dunn
Date: 29 October 2019
Date Deposited: 08 Nov 2019 16:47
Last Modified: 01 Feb 2024 20:42
PMCID: PMC6886125
Related URLs:
URI: https://repository.cshl.edu/id/eprint/38674

Actions (login required)

Administrator's edit/view item Administrator's edit/view item
CSHL HomeAbout CSHLResearchEducationNews & FeaturesCampus & Public EventsCareersGiving