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CANCER METABOLISM

ASS1igning purine dependency to cancer

Nature Cancer volume 1, pages 862–863 (2020)Cite this article

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The urea cycle enzyme argininosuccinate synthase 1 (ASS1) is upregulated in some cancer types. A study now shows that tumor cells with elevated urea cycle activity due to high ASS1 expression enhance gluconeogenesis, enabling a metabolic shift toward serine synthesis and causing purine synthesis addiction for growth and proliferation.

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Fig. 1: High levels of ASS1 and ASL render tumor cells reliant on purine synthesis through the reprogramming of central carbon metabolism.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA

    Elodie Villa & Issam Ben-Sahra

  2. Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA

    Elodie Villa & Issam Ben-Sahra

Authors
  1. Elodie Villa
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  2. Issam Ben-Sahra
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Correspondence to Issam Ben-Sahra.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Villa, E., Ben-Sahra, I. ASS1igning purine dependency to cancer. Nat Cancer 1, 862–863 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43018-020-00117-0

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