The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt/mTOR signaling network as a therapeutic target in acute myelogenous leukemia patients
- PMID: 20671809
- PMCID: PMC2911128
- DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.114
The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt/mTOR signaling network as a therapeutic target in acute myelogenous leukemia patients
Abstract
The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling axis plays a central role in cell proliferation, growth, and survival under physiological conditions. However, aberrant PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling has been implicated in many human cancers, including acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). Therefore, the PI3K/Akt/mTOR network is considered as a validated target for innovative cancer therapy. The limit of acceptable toxicity for standard polychemotherapy has been reached in AML. Novel therapeutic strategies are therefore needed. This review highlights how the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling axis is constitutively active in AML patients, where it affects survival, proliferation, and drug-resistance of leukemic cells including leukemic stem cells. Effective targeting of this pathway with small molecule kinase inhibitors, employed alone or in combination with other drugs, could result in the suppression of leukemic cell growth. Furthermore, targeting the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling network with small pharmacological inhibitors, employed either alone or in combinations with other drugs, may result in less toxic and more efficacious treatment of AML patients. Efforts to exploit pharmacological inhibitors of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR cascade which show efficacy and safety in the clinical setting are now underway.
Keywords: PI3K/Akt/mTOR; combination therapy; leukemia; leukemic stem cells; signal transduction modulators; targeted therapy.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors have no conflict of interests to declare.
Figures
Similar articles
-
Targeting the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling network in acute myelogenous leukemia.Expert Opin Investig Drugs. 2009 Sep;18(9):1333-49. doi: 10.1517/14728220903136775. Expert Opin Investig Drugs. 2009. PMID: 19678801 Review.
-
Targeting the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin module for acute myelogenous leukemia therapy: from bench to bedside.Curr Med Chem. 2007;14(19):2009-23. doi: 10.2174/092986707781368423. Curr Med Chem. 2007. PMID: 17691943 Review.
-
Inhibition of mTOR kinase as a therapeutic target for acute myeloid leukemia.Expert Opin Ther Targets. 2017 Jul;21(7):705-714. doi: 10.1080/14728222.2017.1333600. Epub 2017 Jun 9. Expert Opin Ther Targets. 2017. PMID: 28537457 Review.
-
Dual PI3K/mTOR inhibition shows antileukemic activity in MLL-rearranged acute myeloid leukemia.Leukemia. 2015 Apr;29(4):828-38. doi: 10.1038/leu.2014.305. Epub 2014 Oct 17. Leukemia. 2015. PMID: 25322685
-
Targeting the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling axis in children with hematologic malignancies.Paediatr Drugs. 2012 Oct 1;14(5):299-316. doi: 10.2165/11594740-000000000-00000. Paediatr Drugs. 2012. PMID: 22845486 Free PMC article. Review.
Cited by
-
A Review of Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia: Diagnosis and Novel Treatment.Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2023 Nov 15;16(11):1614. doi: 10.3390/ph16111614. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2023. PMID: 38004478 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Statins markedly potentiate aminopeptidase inhibitor activity against (drug-resistant) human acute myeloid leukemia cells.Cancer Drug Resist. 2023 Jul 4;6(3):430-446. doi: 10.20517/cdr.2023.20. eCollection 2023. Cancer Drug Resist. 2023. PMID: 37842233 Free PMC article.
-
Exercise Promotes Tissue Regeneration: Mechanisms Involved and Therapeutic Scope.Sports Med Open. 2023 May 6;9(1):27. doi: 10.1186/s40798-023-00573-9. Sports Med Open. 2023. PMID: 37149504 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Dual mTORC1/2 Inhibition Synergistically Enhances AML Cell Death in Combination with the BCL2 Antagonist Venetoclax.Clin Cancer Res. 2023 Apr 3;29(7):1332-1343. doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-22-2729. Clin Cancer Res. 2023. PMID: 36652560 Free PMC article.
-
EIF4A inhibition targets bioenergetic homeostasis in AML MOLM-14 cells in vitro and in vivo and synergizes with cytarabine and venetoclax.J Exp Clin Cancer Res. 2022 Dec 9;41(1):340. doi: 10.1186/s13046-022-02542-8. J Exp Clin Cancer Res. 2022. PMID: 36482393 Free PMC article.
References
-
- Smith M, Barnett M, Bassan R, Gatta G, Tondini C, Kern W. Adult acute myeloid leukaemia. Crit Rev Oncol Hematol. 2004;50:197–222. - PubMed
-
- Ravandi F, Burnett AK, Agura ED, Kantarjian HM. Progress in the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia. Cancer. 2007;110:1900–10. - PubMed
-
- Stapnes C, Gjertsen BT, Reikvam H, Bruserud O. Targeted therapy in acute myeloid leukaemia: current status and future directions. Expert Opin Investig Drugs. 2009;18:433–55. - PubMed
-
- Nasr R, Lallemand-Breitenbach V, Zhu J, Guillemin MC, de The H. Therapy-induced PML/RARA proteolysis and acute promyelocytic leukemia cure. Clin Cancer Res. 2009;15:6321–6. - PubMed
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
Grants and funding
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical
Miscellaneous