Frontiers in Oncology (Mar 2020)

Phosphofructokinase 1 Platelet Isoform Promotes β-Catenin Transactivation for Tumor Development

  • Jong-Ho Lee,
  • Fei Shao,
  • Jinjie Ling,
  • Sean Lu,
  • Rui Liu,
  • Linyong Du,
  • Jin Woong Chung,
  • Sang Seok Koh,
  • Sun-Hee Leem,
  • Jichun Shao,
  • Dongming Xing,
  • Dongming Xing,
  • Zhiqiang An,
  • Zhimin Lu

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fonc.2020.00211
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10

Abstract

Read online

Metabolism plays a critical role in direct regulation of a variety of cellular activities via metabolic enzymes and metabolites. Here, we demonstrate that phosphofructokinase 1 platelet isoform (PFKP), which catalyzes a rate-limiting reaction in glycolysis, promotes EGFR activation-induced nuclear translocation and activation of β-catenin, thereby enhancing the expression of its downstream genes CCND1 and MYC in human glioblastoma cells. Importantly, we showed that EGFR-phosphorylated PFKP Y64 has a critical role in AKT activation and AKT-mediated β-catenin S552 phosphorylation and subsequent β-catenin transactivation and promotion of tumor cell glycolysis, migration, invasion, proliferation, and brain tumor growth. These findings highlight a novel mechanism underlying a glycolytic enzyme-mediated β-catenin transactivation and underscore the integrated and reciprocal regulation of metabolism and gene expression, which are two fundamental biological processes in tumor development.

Keywords