PI3K Pathway in Cancer
A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Cancer Therapy".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 October 2024 | Viewed by 9506
Special Issue Editors
Interests: PI3K; targeted therapies; molecular oncology; immunotherapy; biomarkers; CDK4/6
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
PI3K-AKT-mTOR signaling pathway controls multiple cellular processes, e.g. proliferation, growth, motility and survival, and is therefore crucial for tumor formation. The pathway can be activated by multiple factors, such as oncogenic genomic alterations in AKT, mTOR, PIK3CA, PIK3R1, PTEN, LKB1, TSCI1 and TSC2, as well as other critical genes. These oncogenic genomic alterations could be exploited in two ways: 1) as drug targets or 2) as biomarkers to predict cancer patient outcome and response to targeted therapies potentially involving critical molecules in the pathway. Currently, over 40 inhibitors are known to target this pathway, some of which are clinically approved by the FDA, including everolimus, temsirolimus, copanlisib and idelalisib. Novel compounds and antibodies have been discovered targeting mutated components of the pathway; as an example, alpelisib targets mutated PI3KCA, commonly found in 30–40% of breast cancer cases, offering hope for the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer across molecular subtypes.
The role of the PI3K-AKT-mTOR pathway in immunology is intriguing. In organ transplantation mTOR-inhibitor everolimus has been widely employed as an immune suppressor to prevent transplant rejection in heart or kidney recipients. The same drug promises to be a second-line therapy for post-menopausal women experiencing breast cancer recurrence after hormone therapy. The role of the pathway in the tumor microenvironment may be tissue-specific and is still a matter of debate. Further studies will clarify whether PI3K inhibitors can modulate the immune system in the fight against cancer. This special issue of Cancers aims to highlight the exciting field of PI3K-AKT-mTOR biology to unravel new prospects and improve cancer therapeutics.
Dr. Navid Sobhani
Dr. Gabriella Nesi
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- PI3K
- AKT
- mTOR
- PI3KCA mutations
- targeted therapies
- biomarkers
- everolimus
- temsirolimus
- copanlisib and idelalisib
- alpelisib
- immunology
