Sphingosine Kinases Signalling in Carcinogenesis

Title:Sphingosine Kinases Signalling in Carcinogenesis

Volume: 15 Issue: 4

Author(s): Gabriella Marfe, Giovanna Mirone, Arvind Shukla and Carla Di Stefano

Affiliation:

Keywords: Cancer, receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs), sphingosine kinase 1 (SphK1), sphingolipids, sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P), tyrosine kinase inibitors (TKIs).

Abstract: Sphingosine kinases (Sphk1 and 2) regulate the prodution of sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P), that is key molecule in cancer development. SphK1, which is commonly overexpressed in malignant tumours, significantly contributes to the pathogenesis of various types of cancer as well as to resistance to different Tyrosine Kinase inibitors (TKIs). Even, SphK2 may promote apoptosis and inhibit cell growth but its role has not yet been fully understood in pathologic conditions. Different growth factorsinduced activation of receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) results in production of Sphk1 which catalyzes the phosphorylation of sphingosine. Such enzyme, in turn, is involved in many cellular processes by its five receptors. These are able to transactivate RTKs through amplification of a positive-feedback signaling loop. In conclusion, development of pharmacological inhibitors of SphK1 has been limited by the lack of completely understanding of the enzymatic activation mechanisms of SphK1.

Cite this article as:

Marfe Gabriella, Mirone Giovanna, Shukla Arvind and Di Stefano Carla, Sphingosine Kinases Signalling in Carcinogenesis, Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry 2015; 15 (4) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1389557515666150227105415