Mitochondria-Translocated PGK1 Functions as a Protein Kinase to Coordinate Glycolysis and the TCA Cycle in Tumorigenesis.

It is unclear how the Warburg effect that exemplifies enhanced glycolysis in the cytosol is coordinated with suppressed mitochondrial pyruvate metabolism. We demonstrate here that hypoxia, EGFR activation, and expression of K-Ras G12V and B-Raf V600E induce mitochondrial translocation of phosphoglycerate kinase 1 (PGK1); this is mediated by ERK-dependent PGK1 S203 phosphorylation and subsequent PIN1-mediated cis-trans isomerization. Mitochondrial PGK1 acts as a protein kinase to phosphorylate pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 (PDHK1) at T338, which activates PDHK1 to phosphorylate and inhibit the pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) complex. This reduces mitochondrial pyruvate utilization, suppresses reactive oxygen species production, increases lactate production, and promotes brain tumorigenesis. Furthermore, PGK1 S203 and PDHK1 T338 phosphorylation levels correlate with PDH S293 inactivating phosphorylation levels and poor prognosis in glioblastoma patients. This work highlights that PGK1 acts as a protein kinase in coordinating glycolysis and the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, which is instrumental in cancer metabolism and tumorigenesis.

Helichrysetin inhibits gastric cancer growth by targeting c-Myc/PDHK1 axis-mediated energy metabolism reprogramming.

Helichrysetin (HEL), a chalcone isolated from Alpinia katsumadai Hayata, has an antitumor activity in human lung and cervical cancers. However, the inhibitory effect and underlying mechanism of HEL in gastric cancer have not been elucidated. Here, HEL significantly inhibited the growth of gastric cancer MGC803 cells in vitro and in vivo. HEL decreased expression and transcriptional regulatory activity of c-Myc and mRNA expression of c-Myc target genes. HEL enhanced mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) and reduced glycolysis as evidenced by increased mitochondrial adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production and excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation, and decreased the pPDHA1/PDHA1 ratio and Glyco-ATP production. Pyruvate enhanced OXPHOS after HEL treatment. c-Myc overexpression abolished HEL-induced inhibition of cell viability, glycolysis, and protein expression of PDHK1 and LDHA. PDHK1 overexpression also counteracted inhibitory effect of HEL on cell viability. Conversely, c-Myc siRNA decreased cell viability, glycolysis, and PDHK1 expression. NAC rescued the decrease in viability of HEL-treated cells. Additionally, HEL inhibited the overactivated mTOR/p70S6K pathway in vitro and in vivo. HEL-induced cell viability inhibition was counteracted by an mTOR agonist. mTOR inhibitor also decreased cell viability. Similar results were obtained in SGC7901 cells. HEL repressed lactate production and efflux in MGC803 cells. These results revealed that HEL inhibits gastric cancer growth by targeting mTOR/p70S6K/c-Myc/PDHK1-mediated energy metabolism reprogramming in cancer cells. Therefore, HEL may be a potential agent for gastric cancer treatment by modulating cancer energy metabolism reprogramming.

Enhanced antitumor potential induced by chloroacetate-loaded benzophenones acting as fused tubulin-pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 (PDHK1) ligands.

The majority of cancers detected every year are treated with anti-cancer compounds. Unfortunately, many tumors become resistant to antineoplastic drugs. One option is to use cocktails of compounds acting on different targets to try to overcome the resistant cells. This type of approach can produce good results, but is often accompanied by a sharp increase of associated side effects. The strategy presented herein focuses on the use of a single compound acting on two different biological targets enhancing potency and lowering the toxicity of the chemotherapy. In this light, the approach presented in the current study involves the dual inhibition of human pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase-1 (PDHK1) and tubulin polymerization using mono-, di- and tri-chloroacetate-loaded benzophenones and benzothiophenones. Synthesized molecules were evaluated in vitro on tubulin polymerization and on pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1. The cell cycle distribution after treatment of DA1-3b leukemic cells with active compounds was tested. Twenty-two benzo(thio)phenones have been selected by the National Cancer Institute (USA) for evaluation of their anti-proliferative potential against NCI-60 cancer cell lines including multidrug-resistant tumor cell lines. Seventeen molecules proved to be very effective in combating the growth of tumor cells exhibiting inhibitory activities up to nanomolar range. The molecular docking of best antitumor molecules in the study was realized with GOLD in the tubulin and PDHK1 binding sites, and allowed to understand the positioning of active molecules. Chloroacetate-loaded benzo(thio)phenones are dual targeted tubulin- and pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 (PDHK1)-binding antitumor agents and exhibited superior antitumor activity compared to non-chlorinated congeners particularly on leukemia, colon, melanoma and breast cancer cell lines.

Pyruvate Dehydrogenase-Dependent Metabolic Programming Affects the Oligodendrocyte Maturation and Remyelination.

The metabolic needs of the premature/premyelinating oligodendrocytes (pre-OLs) and mature oligodendrocytes (OLs) are distinct. The metabolic control of oligodendrocyte maturation from the pre-OLs to the OLs is not fully understood. Here, we show that the terminal maturation and higher mitochondrial respiration in the OLs is an integrated process controlled through pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (Pdh). Combined bioenergetics and metabolic studies show that OLs show elevated mitochondrial respiration than the pre-OLs. Our signaling studies show that the increased mitochondrial respiration activity in the OLs is mediated by the activation of Pdh due to inhibition of the pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase-1 (Pdhk1) that phosphorylates and inhibits Pdh activity. Accordingly, when Pdhk1 is directly expressed in the pre-OLs, they fail to mature into the OLs. While Pdh converts pyruvate into the acetyl-CoA by its oxidative decarboxylation, our study shows that Pdh-dependent acetyl-CoA generation from pyruvate contributes to the acetylation of the bHLH family transcription factor, oligodendrocyte transcription factor 1 (Olig1) which is known to be involved in the OL maturation. Pdh inhibition via direct expression of Pdhk1 in the pre-OLs blocks the Olig1-acetylation and OL maturation. Using the cuprizone model of demyelination, we show that Pdh is deactivated during the demyelination phase, which is however reversed in the remyelination phase upon cuprizone withdrawal. In addition, Pdh activity status correlates with the Olig1-acetylation status in the cuprizone model. Hence, the Pdh metabolic node activation allows a robust mitochondrial respiration and activation of a molecular program necessary for the terminal maturation of oligodendrocytes. Our findings open a new dialogue in the developmental biology that links cellular development and metabolism. These findings have far-reaching implications in the development of therapies for a variety of demyelinating disorders including multiple sclerosis.

PPP3CB Inhibits Cell Proliferation and the Warburg Effect in Bladder Cancer by Blocking PDHK1.

BACKGROUND: Cancer treatment has recently shifted towards metabolic approaches aimed at enhancing therapeutic efficacy. Somewhat surprisingly, a known regulator of energy metabolism in normal tissues, PPP3CB, is down-regulated in bladder cancer. This suggests that PPP3CB could exert an inhibitory effect on bladder cancer through its role in energy metabolism. METHODS: To explore the above hypothesis, we employed non-targeted metabolism screening in bladder cancer cells with knockdown of PPP3CB. Glucose uptake and lactate production were carefully measured using specialized assay kits for glucose/lactic acid content. Western blot analysis was also used to evaluate the expression levels of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 (PDHK1) and p-PDHA1 in cells with PPP3CB knockdown. To substantiate the findings, co-immunoprecipitation (co-IP) experiments were performed to validate the interaction between PPP3CB and PDHK1. Various in vitro assays were also performed, including clone formation assay and Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK8) viability assays. The in vivo anti-tumor potential of PPP3CB in bladder cancer was also studied using a nude mouse tumorigenesis model. RESULTS: Significant down-regulation of PPP3CB was observed in bladder tumors, and potent anti-tumor effects of PPP3CB were observed in vitro. Investigation of the underlying mechanism by which PPP3CB hampers glycolysis in bladder cancer cells revealed that it interacted with PDHK1 to inhibit its protein stabilization. PDHK1 thus appears to be a crucial mediator through which PPP3CB exerts its inhibitory effects on bladder cancer cells. CONCLUSIONS: In summary, PPP3CB exerts strong inhibitory influences on bladder cancer cell proliferation and glycolysis via its destabilization of PDHK1. These results highlight the potential of PPP3CB as a novel regulator of the Warburg effect. Interestingly, the downregulation of PPP3CB in bladder cancer cells increases the Warburg effect, thereby generating more lactic acid and reshaping the tumor microenvironment so as to promote tumor cell proliferation.

Synthetic Essentiality of Metabolic Regulator PDHK1 in PTEN-Deficient Cells and Cancers.

Phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN) is a tumor suppressor and bi-functional lipid and protein phosphatase. We report that the metabolic regulator pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase1 (PDHK1) is a synthetic-essential gene in PTEN-deficient cancer and normal cells. The PTEN protein phosphatase dephosphorylates nuclear factor κB (NF-κB)-activating protein (NKAP) and limits NFκB activation to suppress expression of PDHK1, a NF-κB target gene. Loss of the PTEN protein phosphatase upregulates PDHK1 to induce aerobic glycolysis and PDHK1 cellular dependence. PTEN-deficient human tumors harbor increased PDHK1, a biomarker of decreased patient survival. This study uncovers a PTEN-regulated signaling pathway and reveals PDHK1 as a potential target in PTEN-deficient cancers.

Early TCR Signaling Sweetens Effector Function through PDHK1.

T cells rapidly engage glycolysis upon activation. The signaling pathways through which T cell receptor (TCR) activation initiates glycolysis have been a mystery. A long-awaited answer has been provided by Menk et al., who show that pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 (PDHK1) is in the center of signaling events linking TCR activation to glycolysis.

Early TCR Signaling Induces Rapid Aerobic Glycolysis Enabling Distinct Acute T Cell Effector Functions.

To fulfill bioenergetic demands of activation, T cells perform aerobic glycolysis, a process common to highly proliferative cells in which glucose is fermented into lactate rather than oxidized in mitochondria. However, the signaling events that initiate aerobic glycolysis in T cells remain unclear. We show T cell activation rapidly induces glycolysis independent of transcription, translation, CD28, and Akt and not involving increased glucose uptake or activity of glycolytic enzymes. Rather, TCR signaling promotes activation of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 (PDHK1), inhibiting mitochondrial import of pyruvate and facilitating breakdown into lactate. Inhibition of PDHK1 reveals this switch is required acutely for cytokine synthesis but dispensable for cytotoxicity. Functionally, cytokine synthesis is modulated via lactate dehydrogenase, which represses cytokine mRNA translation when aerobic glycolysis is disengaged. Our data provide mechanistic insight to metabolic contribution to effector T cell function and suggest that T cell function may be finely tuned through modulation of glycolytic activity.