A fetal oncogene NUAK2 is an emerging therapeutic target in glioblastoma

Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) is a highly malignant brain cancer with limited effective therapies. Neurodevelopmental pathways have been implicated in glioma formation, with key neurodevelopmental regulators being re-expressed or co-opted during glioma tumorigenesis. Here we identified a serine/threonine kinase, NUAK family kinase 2 (NUAK2), as a fetal oncogene in mouse and human brains. We found robust expression of NUAK2 in the embryonic brain that decreases throughout postnatal stages and then is re-expressed in malignant gliomas. However, the role of NUAK2 in GBM tumorigenesis remains unclear. We demonstrate that CRIPSR-Cas9 mediated NUAK2 deletion in GBM cells results in suppression of proliferation, while overexpression leads to enhanced cell growth in both in vitro and in vivo models. Further investigation of the downstream biological processes dysregulated in the absence of NUAK2 reveals that NUAK2 modulates extracellular matrix (ECM) components to facilitate migratory behavior. Lastly, we determined that pharmaceutical inhibition of NUAK2 is sufficient to impede the proliferation and migration of malignant glioma cells. Our results suggest that NUAK2 is an actionable therapeutic target for GBM treatment.