Molecular Pathways: PI3K Pathway Phosphatases as Biomarkers for Cancer Prognosis and Therapy

Chen, M., Nowak, D. G., Trotman, L. C. (June 2014) Molecular Pathways: PI3K Pathway Phosphatases as Biomarkers for Cancer Prognosis and Therapy. Clinical Cancer Research, 20 (12). pp. 3057-63. ISSN 1078-0432

Abstract

Cancer research has seen tremendous changes over the past decade. Fast progress in sequencing technology has afforded us with landmark genetic alterations, which had immediate impact on clinical science and practice by pointing to new kinase targets, such as phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K), the EGF receptor, or BRAF. The PI3K pathway for growth control has emerged as a prime example for both oncogene activation and tumor suppressor loss in cancer. Here, we discuss how therapy using PI3K pathway inhibitors could benefit from information on specific phosphatases, which naturally antagonize the kinase targets. This PI3K pathway is found mutated in most cancer types, including prostate, breast, colon, and brain tumors. The tumor-suppressing phosphatases operate at two levels. Lipid-level phosphatases, such as PTEN and INPP4B, revert PI3K activity to keep the lipid second messengers inactive. At the protein level, PHLPP1/2 protein phosphatases inactivate AKT kinase, thus antagonizing mTOR complex 2 activity. However, in contrast with their kinase counterparts the phosphatases are unlikely drug targets. They would need to be stimulated by therapy and are commonly deleted and mutated in cancer. Yet, because they occupy critical nodes in preventing cancer initiation and progression, the information on their status has tremendous potential in outcome prediction, and in matching the available kinase inhibitor repertoire with the right patients. Clin Cancer Res; 20(12); 3057-63. (c)2014 AACR.

Item Type: Paper
Subjects: diseases & disorders > cancer
therapies
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification > protein types > enzymes > phosphoinositide 3-kinase
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification > protein types > enzymes > protein phosphatase
CSHL Authors:
Communities: CSHL labs > Trotman lab
Depositing User: Matt Covey
Date: 15 June 2014
Date Deposited: 20 Jun 2014 19:45
Last Modified: 20 Jun 2014 19:45
PMCID: PMC4058638
Related URLs:
URI: https://repository.cshl.edu/id/eprint/30317

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