Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 25, 2025

Oncogene Expression Analysis with Alterations in pH in a Pancreatic Ductal Cell Line
06:24

Oncogene Expression Analysis with Alterations in pH in a Pancreatic Ductal Cell Line

Published on: April 11, 2025

463

PPAR/PDK4 pathway is involved in the anticancer effects of cGMP in pancreatic cancer

Mai Yamashita1, Motofumi Kumazoe1, Hiroaki Onda1

  • 1Division of Applied Biological Chemistry, Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agriculture, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, 819-0395, Japan.

Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
|June 24, 2023
PubMed

Insights

Cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) targets cancer stem cells in pancreatic cancer by upregulating the PPARα/PDK4 pathway. This discovery offers potential new therapeutic strategies for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) treatment.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cancer Metabolism

Background:

  • Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) presents a high mortality rate and challenges with treatment side effects and drug resistance in cancer stem cells (CSCs).
  • Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are crucial drivers of tumor progression and treatment failure in PDAC.
  • Metabolic dysregulation is fundamental to maintaining the CSC phenotype.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) in suppressing CSC properties within PDAC.
  • To explore the hypothesis that cGMP induction combats CSCs via energy-related signaling pathways.
  • To identify potential therapeutic targets for eradicating pancreatic CSCs.

Main Methods:

  • Induction of cGMP in PDAC cells.
  • Analysis of the PPARα/PDK4 signaling pathway.
  • Correlation of PDK4 gene expression with patient prognosis in pancreatic cancer.

Main Results:

  • cGMP induction was shown to upregulate the PPARα/PDK4 pathway.
  • Suppression of CSC properties in PDAC was observed following cGMP induction.
  • Higher PDK4 gene expression in pancreatic cancer patients correlated with a better prognosis.

Conclusions:

  • The PPARα/PDK4 pathway, modulated by cGMP, plays a significant role in suppressing pancreatic CSC properties.
  • PDK4 gene expression serves as a potential prognostic biomarker for pancreatic cancer.
  • Targeting cGMP-mediated pathways presents a promising therapeutic avenue for pancreatic CSCs.
Keywords:
CancerPDACPDK4PPARαcGMP

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