The roles and mechanisms of SREBP1 in cancer development and drug response

Ying He; Shasha Qi; Lu Chen; Jinyu Zhu; Linda Liang; Xudong Chen; Hao Zhang; Lvjia Zhuo; Shujuan Zhao; Shuiping Liu; Tian Xie

doi:10.1016/j.gendis.2023.04.022

The roles and mechanisms of SREBP1 in cancer development and drug response

Genes Dis. 2023 Jun 22;11(4):100987. doi: 10.1016/j.gendis.2023.04.022. eCollection 2024 Jul.

Authors

Ying He^{1

2}, Shasha Qi^{1

2}, Lu Chen^{1

2}, Jinyu Zhu^{1

2}, Linda Liang¹, Xudong Chen^{1

2}, Hao Zhang^{1

2}, Lvjia Zhuo^{1

2}, Shujuan Zhao^{1

2}, Shuiping Liu^{1

2

3}, Tian Xie^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ School of Pharmacy, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 311121, China.
² Key Laboratory of Elemene Class Anti-Cancer Chinese Medicines, Engineering Laboratory of Development and Application of Traditional Chinese Medicines, Collaborative Innovation Center of Traditional Chinese Medicines of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 311121, China.
³ Laboratory of Cancer Genomics, Division of Cellular and Molecular Research, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 169610, Singapore.

Abstract

Cancer occurrence and development are closely related to increased lipid production and glucose consumption. Lipids are the basic component of the cell membrane and play a significant role in cancer cell processes such as cell-to-cell recognition, signal transduction, and energy supply, which are vital for cancer cell rapid proliferation, invasion, and metastasis. Sterol regulatory element-binding transcription factor 1 (SREBP1) is a key transcription factor regulating the expression of genes related to cholesterol biosynthesis, lipid homeostasis, and fatty acid synthesis. In addition, SREBP1 and its upstream or downstream target genes are implicated in various metabolic diseases, particularly cancer. However, no review of SREBP1 in cancer biology has yet been published. Herein, we summarized the roles and mechanisms of SREBP1 biological processes in cancer cells, including SREBP1 modification, lipid metabolism and reprogramming, glucose and mitochondrial metabolism, immunity, and tumor microenvironment, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, cell cycle, apoptosis, and ferroptosis. Additionally, we discussed the potential role of SREBP1 in cancer prognosis, drug response such as drug sensitivity to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and the potential drugs targeting SREBP1 and its corresponding pathway, elucidating the potential clinical application based on SREBP1 and its corresponding signal pathway.

Keywords: Cancer; Drug; Lipid metabolism reprogramming; Resistance; SREBP1.

Publication types

Review