PGK1 Drives Hepatocellular Carcinoma Metastasis by Enhancing Metabolic Process

During the proliferation and metastasis, the tumor cells prefer glycolysis (Warburg effect), but its exact mechanism remains largely unknown. In this study, we demonstrated that phosphoglycerate kinase 1 (PGK1) is an important enzyme in the pathway of metabolic glycolysis. We observed a significant...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Huijun Xie, Guihui Tong, Yupei Zhang, Shu Liang, Kairui Tang, Qinhe Yang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2017-07-01
Series:International Journal of Molecular Sciences
Subjects:
MYC
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/18/8/1630
Description
Summary:During the proliferation and metastasis, the tumor cells prefer glycolysis (Warburg effect), but its exact mechanism remains largely unknown. In this study, we demonstrated that phosphoglycerate kinase 1 (PGK1) is an important enzyme in the pathway of metabolic glycolysis. We observed a significant overexpression of PGK1 in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues, and a correlation between PGK1 expression and poor survival of hepatocellular carcinoma patients. Also, the depletion of PGK1 dramatically reduced cancer cell proliferation and metastasis, indicating an oncogenic role of PGK1 in liver cancer progression. Further experiments showed that PGK1 played an important role in MYC-induced metabolic reprogramming, which led to an enhanced Warburg effect. Our results revealed a new effect of PGK1, which can provide a new treatment strategy for hepatocellular carcinoma, as PGK1 is used to indicate the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
ISSN:1422-0067