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mTOR activation is a biomarker and a central pathway to autoimmune disorders, cancer, obesity, and aging
Author(s) -
Perl Andras
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
annals of the new york academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.712
H-Index - 248
eISSN - 1749-6632
pISSN - 0077-8923
DOI - 10.1111/nyas.12756
Subject(s) - mtorc1 , pi3k/akt/mtor pathway , mtorc2 , mechanistic target of rapamycin , cancer research , rptor , autophagy , biology , rheb , immunology , signal transduction , microbiology and biotechnology , genetics , apoptosis
The mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a ubiquitous serine/threonine kinase, which plays pivotal roles in integrating growth signals on a cellular level. To support proliferation and survival under stress, two interacting complexes that harbor mTOR, mTORC1 and mTORC2, promote the transcription of genes involved in carbohydrate metabolism and lipogenesis, enhance protein translation, and inhibit autophagy. Although rapamycin was originally developed as an inhibitor of T cell proliferation for preventing organ transplant rejection, its molecular target, mTOR, has been subsequently identified as a central regulator of metabolic cues that drive lineage specification in the immune system. Owing to oxidative stress, the activation of mTORC1 has emerged as a central pathway for the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus and other autoimmune diseases. Paradoxically, mTORC1 has also been identified as a mediator of the Warburg effect that allows cell survival under hypoxia. Rapamycin and new classes of mTOR inhibitors are being developed to block not only transplant rejection and autoimmunity but also to treat obesity and various forms of cancer. Through preventing these diseases, personalized mTOR blockade holds promise to extend life span.