Cooperation Between the NRF2 Pathway and Oncogenic β-catenin During HCC Tumorigenesis.

CTNNB1 (catenin beta 1)-mutated hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) account for a large proportion of human HCCs. They display high levels of respiratory chain activity. As metabolism and redox balance are closely linked, tumor cells must maintain their redox status during these metabolic alterations.

Lkb1 suppresses amino acid-driven gluconeogenesis in the liver.

Excessive glucose production by the liver is a key factor in the hyperglycemia observed in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Here, we highlight a novel role of liver kinase B1 (Lkb1) in this regulation. We show that mice with a hepatocyte-specific deletion of Lkb1 have higher levels of hepatic amino acid catabolism, driving gluconeogenesis.

LKB1 signaling is activated in CTNNB1-mutated HCC and positively regulates β-catenin-dependent CTNNB1-mutated HCC.

Hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) are known to be highly heterogenous. Within the extensive histopathological and molecular heterogeneity of HCC, tumors with mutations in CTNNB1, encoding β-catenin (CTNNB1-mutated HCC), constitute a very homogeneous group. We previously characterized a distinctive metabolic and histological phenotype for CTNNB1-mutated HCC.

AXIN deficiency in human and mouse hepatocytes induces hepatocellular carcinoma in the absence of β-catenin activation.

Background & Aims: The Wnt/β-catenin pathway is the most frequently deregulated pathway in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Inactivating mutations of the gene encoding AXIN1, a known negative regulator of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, are observed in about 10% of HCCs. Whole-genome studies usually place HCC with AXIN1 mutations and CTNNB1 mutations in the group of tumors with Wnt/β-catenin activated program.

RSK Regulates PFK-2 Activity to Promote Metabolic Rewiring in Melanoma.

Metabolic reprogramming is a hallmark of cancer that includes increased glucose uptake and accelerated aerobic glycolysis. This phenotype is required to fulfill anabolic demands associated with aberrant cell proliferation and is often mediated by oncogenic drivers such as activated BRAF. In this study, we show that the MAPK-activated p90 ribosomal S6 kinase (RSK) is necessary to maintain glycolytic metabolism in BRAF-mutated melanoma cells.