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Amino acid metabolism as a therapeutic target in cancer: A review

Endicott, Molly; Jones, Michael; Hull, Jonathon

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Authors

Molly Endicott

Michael Jones

Profile image of Jonathon Hull

Jonathon Hull Jonathon2.Hull@uwe.ac.uk
Senior Lecturer in Biomedical Sci (Biochemistry)



Abstract

Malignant cells often demonstrate a proliferative advantage when compared to non-malignant cells. However, the rapid growth and metabolism required for survival can also highlight vulnerabilities specific to these malignant cells. One such vulnerability exhibited by cancer is an increased demand for amino acids (AAs), which often results in a dependency on exogenous sources of AAs or requires upregulation of de novo synthesis. These metabolic alterations can be exploited by therapy, which aims to improve treatment outcome and decrease relapse and reoccurrence. One clinically utilised strategy targeting AA dependency is the use of asparaginase in the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL), which results in a depletion of exogenous asparagine and subsequent cancer cell death. Examples of other successful strategies include the exploitation of arginine deiminase and methioninase, nutrient restriction of methionine and the inhibition of glutaminase. In this review, we summarise these treatment strategies into three promising avenues: AA restriction, enzymatic depletion and inhibition of metabolism. This review provides an insight into the complexity of metabolism in cancer, whilst highlighting these three current research avenues that have support in both preclinical and clinical settings.

Journal Article Type Review
Acceptance Date Jul 20, 2021
Online Publication Date Jul 22, 2021
Publication Date 2021-08
Deposit Date Jul 29, 2021
Publicly Available Date Aug 19, 2021
Journal Amino Acids
Print ISSN 0939-4451
Electronic ISSN 1438-2199
Publisher Springer (part of Springer Nature)
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 53
Pages 1169–1179
DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/s00726-021-03052-1
Keywords Amino acids; Cancer; Oncology; Metabolism; Asparaginase
Public URL https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/7556350

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