Cancer cells use aerobic glycolysis preferentially for energy provision and this metabolic change is important for tumour growth. Here, we have found a link between the tumour suppressor p53, the transcription factor NF-kappaB and glycolysis. In p53-deficient primary cultured cells, kinase activities of IKKalpha and IKKbeta and subsequent NF-kappaB activity were enhanced. Activation of NF-kappaB, by loss of p53, caused an increase in the rate of aerobic glycolysis and upregulation of Glut3. Oncogenic Ras-induced cell transformation and acceleration of aerobic glycolysis in p53-deficient cells were suppressed in the absence of p65/NF-kappaB expression, and were restored by GLUT3 expression. It was also shown that a glycolytic inhibitor diminished the enhanced IKK activity in p53-deficient cells. Moreover, in Ras-expressing p53-deficient cells, IKK activity was suppressed by p65 deficiency and restored by GLUT3 expression. Taken together, these data indicate that p53 restricts activation of the IKK-NF-kappaB pathway through suppression of glycolysis. These results suggest that a positive-feedback loop exists, whereby glycolysis drives IKK-NF-kappaB activation, and that hyperactivation of this loop by loss of p53 is important in oncogene-induced cell transformation.

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The hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway regulates the development of many organs in mammals, and activation of this pathway is widely observed in human cancers. Although it is known that Hh signaling activates the expression of genes involved in cell growth, the precise role of the Hh pathway in cancer development is still unclear. Here, we show that constitutively activated mutants of oncogenesis ͉ ubiquitination ͉ cell growth ͉ apoptosis

The turnover of integrin receptors is critical for cell migration and adhesion dynamics. Here we find that force development at integrins regulates adaptor protein recruitment and endocytosis. Using mobile RGD (Arg-Gly-Asp) ligands on supported lipid membranes (RGD membranes) and rigid RGD ligands on glass (RGD-glass), we find that matrix force-dependent integrin signals block endocytosis. Dab2, an adaptor protein of clathrin-mediated endocytosis, is not recruited to activated integrin-beta3 clusters on RGD-glass; however, it is recruited to integrin-mediated adhesions on RGD membranes. Further, when force generation is inhibited on RGD-glass, Dab2 binds to integrin-beta3 clusters. Dab2 binding to integrin-beta3 excludes other adhesion-related adaptor proteins, such as talin. The clathrin-mediated endocytic machinery combines with Dab2 to facilitate the endocytosis of RGD-integrin-beta3 clusters. From these observations, we propose that loss of traction force on ligand-bound integrin-beta3 causes recruitment of Dab2/clathrin, resulting in endocytosis of integrins.

DNA G-quadruplex formation is highly responsive to surrounding conditions, particularly K concentration. Malignant cancer cells have a much lower K concentration than normal cells because of overexpression of a K channel; thus, G-quadruplexes may be unstable in cancer cells. Here, we physicochemically investigated how changes in intracellular chemical environments in vitro and in cells influence G-quadruplex formation and transcription during tumor progression. In vitro, the stable G-quadruplex formation inhibits transcription in a solution containing 150 mM KCl (normal condition). As K concentration decreases, which decreases G-quadruplex stability, transcript production from templates with G-quadruplex-forming potential increases. In normal cells, the trend in transcript productions was similar to that in in vitro experiments, with transcription efficiency inversely correlated with G-quadruplex stability. Interestingly, higher transcript levels were produced from templates with G-quadruplex-forming potential in Ras-transformed and highly metastatic breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231) than in nontransformed and control MCF-7 cells. Moreover, the amount of transcript produced from G-quadruplex-forming templates decreased upon addition of siRNA targeting KCNH1 mRNA, which encodes a potassium voltage-gated channel subfamily H member 1 (K10.1). Importantly, G-quadruplex dissociation during tumor progression was observed by immunofluorescence using a G-quadruplex-binding antibody in cells. These results suggest that in normal cells, K ions attenuate the transcription of certain oncogenes by stabilizing G-quadruplex structures. Our findings provide insight into the novel mechanism of overexpression of certain G-rich genes during tumor progression.

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