학술논문
Thymidine Catabolism as a Metabolic Strategy for Cancer Survival
Document Type
article
Author
Sho Tabata; Masatatsu Yamamoto; Hisatsugu Goto; Akiyoshi Hirayama; Maki Ohishi; Takuya Kuramoto; Atsushi Mitsuhashi; Ryuji Ikeda; Misako Haraguchi; Kohichi Kawahara; Yoshinari Shinsato; Kentaro Minami; Atsuro Saijo; Masaki Hanibuchi; Yasuhiko Nishioka; Saburo Sone; Hiroyasu Esumi; Masaru Tomita; Tomoyoshi Soga; Tatsuhiko Furukawa; Shin-ichi Akiyama
Source
Cell Reports, Vol 19, Iss 7, Pp 1313-1321 (2017)
Subject
Language
English
ISSN
2211-1247
Abstract
Thymidine phosphorylase (TP), a rate-limiting enzyme in thymidine catabolism, plays a pivotal role in tumor progression; however, the mechanisms underlying this role are not fully understood. Here, we found that TP-mediated thymidine catabolism could supply the carbon source in the glycolytic pathway and thus contribute to cell survival under conditions of nutrient deprivation. In TP-expressing cells, thymidine was converted to metabolites, including glucose 6-phosphate, lactate, 5-phospho-α-D-ribose 1-diphosphate, and serine, via the glycolytic pathway both in vitro and in vivo. These thymidine-derived metabolites were required for the survival of cells under low-glucose conditions. Furthermore, activation of thymidine catabolism was observed in human gastric cancer. These findings demonstrate that thymidine can serve as a glycolytic pathway substrate in human cancer cells.