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Oncogenic AKTivation by methylation

AKT, also known as protein kinase B, is one of the most frequently dysregulated serine/threonine kinases in cancer, and its hyperactivity drives tumorigenesis and chemotherapy resistance. Two studies now find that AKT methylation by the methyltransferase SETDB1 is an early step in its oncogenic activation.

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Fig. 1: Methylation stimulates AKT activation.

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Correspondence to David A. Guertin.

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Luciano, A.K., Guertin, D.A. Oncogenic AKTivation by methylation. Nat Cell Biol 21, 114–115 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41556-019-0275-8

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