Abstract A41: Leveraging metabolic dependencies in cancer: Cysteine addiction in pancreatic cancer cells

In conclusion, we find that pancreatic cancer cells are highly sensitive to cysteine-deprivation and to treatment with system xc- inhibitors, and that the cell death caused by this stress is an iron-dependent, oxidative form of cell death called ferroptosis. Furthermore, it appears that GSH, the primary antioxidant molecule of the cell, is not solely responsible for mediating this cell death, arguing that cysteine may play other important roles in maintaining redox homeostasis in these cells. Given that previous studies show that global system xc- knockout mice do not exhibit any changes in cellular GSH content, these findings may represent a targetable metabolic dependency in pancreatic cancer cells.Citation Format: Michael A. Badgley, Carmine F. Palermo, Stephen A. Sastra, Brent R. Stockwell, Kenneth P. Olive. Leveraging metabolic dependencies in cancer: Cysteine addiction in pancreatic cancer cells. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference: Metabolism and Cancer; Jun 7-10, 2015; Bellevue, WA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Res 2016;14(1_Suppl):Abstract nr A41.
Source: Molecular Cancer Research - Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Tags: Cancer Metabolic Pathways: Poster Presentations - Proffered Abstracts Source Type: research