Cited by 181Cancer, Hypoxia, and MetabolismCancer Cells and MetastasisPancreatic and Hepatic Oncology Research

Glutamine depletion regulates Slug to promote EMT and metastasis in pancreatic cancer

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Recouvreux, Maria Victoria, Moldenhauer, Matthew R., Galenkamp, Koen M.O., Jung, Michael, James, Brian, Zhang, Yijuan, Lowy, Andrew, Bagchi, Anindya +1 more·2020·Journal of Experimental Medicine

Abstract

Tumor cells rely on glutamine to fulfill their metabolic demands and sustain proliferation. The elevated consumption of glutamine can lead to intratumoral nutrient depletion, causing metabolic stress that has the potential to impact tumor progression. Here, we show that nutrient stress caused by glutamine deprivation leads to the induction of epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cells. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that glutamine deficiency regulates EMT through the up-regulation of the EMT master regulator Slug, a process that is dependent on both MEK/ERK signaling and ATF4. We find that Slug is required in PDAC cells for glutamine deprivation–induced EMT, cell motility, and nutrient stress survival. Importantly, we decipher that Slug is associated with nutrient stress in PDAC tumors and is required for metastasis. These results delineate a novel role for Slug in the nutrient stress response and provide insight into how nutrient depletion might influence PDAC progression.

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Crossref · 10.1084/jem.20200388

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  • Extracellular asparagine from serum and produced by a constitutively active integrated stress response in subpopulations of PDAC cells can be targeted using asparaginase, sensitizing PDAC tumors to mitochondrial inhibition in preclinical models.

    “extracellular asparagine from serum and produced by a constitutively active integrated stress response in subpopulations of PDAC cells can be targeted using asparaginase, potently sensitizing PDAC tumors to mitochondrial inhibition in pre-clinical models239,246.”

    From Pancreatic cancer: Advances and challenges (2023) · cites this paper as [239]

  • Differential activation of the integrated stress response can define subpopulations within individual tumors and drives differential sensitivity to metabolic inhibitors.

    “Differential activation of the integrated stress response can also be used to define sub-populations within individual tumors, which drives differential sensitivity to metabolic inhibitors239.”

    From Pancreatic cancer: Advances and challenges (2023) · cites this paper as [239]

  • Metabolic characterization of clonal lines isolated from tumors revealed that two distinct populations can coexist within the same tumor.

    “metabolic characterization of clonal lines isolated from tumors revealed that two distinct populations can co-exist within the same tumor239”

    From Pancreatic cancer: Advances and challenges (2023) · cites this paper as [239]

  • Asparagine produced by subpopulations of PDAC cells with a constitutively active integrated stress response supports mitochondrial metabolism of other PDAC cells during limited respiration, providing a barrier to metabolic targeting.

    “asparagine produced by subpopulations of PDAC cells that have a constitutively active integrated stress response support the mitochondrial metabolism of other PDAC cells during limited respiration239, providing a barrier to metabolic targeting.”

    From Pancreatic cancer: Advances and challenges (2023) · cites this paper as [239]

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Authors
Recouvreux, M. V., Moldenhauer, M. R., Galenkamp, K. M. O., Jung, M., James, B., Zhang, Y., Lowy, A., Bagchi, A., & Commisso, C.
Affiliations
  • Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute (US)
  • University of California San Diego (US)
Corresponding author
Commisso, Cosimo
Venue
Journal of Experimental Medicine
Published
2020-06-08
Volume
217
Issue
9
ISSN
  • 0022-1007 (ISSN-L)
  • 1540-9538
OpenAlex
W3032930460
Cited by
181
References
57
Citations by year
2026: 15 · 2025: 33 · 2024: 28 · 2023: 37 · 2022: 40 · 2021: 23 · 2020: 4
FWCI
8.87
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • The Journal of Experimental Medicine (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health (R01CA207189)
  • National Cancer Institute (P30CA030199)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cancer Research › Cancer, Hypoxia, and Metabolism
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer Cells and Metastasis
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Pancreatic and Hepatic Oncology Research
Keywords
glutamine deprivation, Slug, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, nutritional stress, metabolic stress, MEK/ERK signaling, ATF4, metastasis, cell motility, tumor progression
MeSH terms
Snail Family Transcription Factors, Adenocarcinoma, Animals, Cell Movement, Cell Survival, Glutamine, Humans, Mice, Inbred C57BL, Neoplasm Metastasis, Pancreatic Neoplasms, RNA, Messenger, Stress, Physiological, Biomarkers, Tumor, Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic, MAP Kinase Signaling System, Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal, Cell Line, Tumor, Activating Transcription Factor 4, HEK293 Cells, Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition

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