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Published on: April 13, 2015

PTEN: its deregulation and tumorigenesis

Tomohiko Maehama1

  • 1Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8640, Japan. tmaehama@nih.go.jp

Biological & Pharmaceutical Bulletin
|September 11, 2007
PubMed

Insights

The tumor suppressor PTEN regulates cell growth; its inactivation causes cancer. This review focuses on PTEN regulators and their role in human tumorigenesis.

Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Oncology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • The tumor suppressor phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) is a key negative regulator of cell proliferation and survival.
  • PTEN antagonizes phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase signaling pathways.
  • Loss-of-function mutations in PTEN lead to uncontrolled cell growth and oncogenic transformation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review mechanisms of PTEN inactivation in human tumorigenesis.
  • To highlight recent research on PTEN regulatory factors.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of PTEN inactivation mechanisms.
  • Focus on recent advancements in understanding PTEN regulators.

Main Results:

  • PTEN inactivation through mutations is a significant factor in human cancer development.
  • Impairment of the PTEN regulatory system is increasingly recognized as a cause of oncogenic transformation.
  • Numerous upstream regulatory factors of PTEN have been identified.

Conclusions:

  • Understanding PTEN regulation is crucial for comprehending tumorigenesis.
  • PTEN regulators represent potential therapeutic targets for cancer treatment.

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