New Metabolic Research leads to New Cancer Treatments

The mTOR pathway is a vital metabolic pathway for the creation of new cells, helping controlling someone's metabolism. It regulates cell growth based on the nutrients available to the cell, halting cells from being created if not enough nutrients are present. mTOR also produces s-adenosylmethionine (SAM) a metabolite used in protein synthesis that is also important for cell growth.

Cancer cells need to use the mTOR pathway to move throughout the body. When cancer is present the mTOR pathway is very active to because it is vital for the synthesis of new tumor cells. Because mTOR is essential for all cells in the body, inhibiting it can lead to some bad side effects., Knowing that when in tumor cell mTOR produces much more SAM than usual, researchers at Northwestern University have done studies on mice, injecting them with tumor cells and giving them SAM inhibitors and testing the speed at which the cancer spread. Their results were overwhelmingly positive and as of April 9th Biotech company Celuity announced an agreement with Pfizer to develop and commercialize the first mTOR inhibitors. I think that once the mTOR inhibitors have successful results in being adjuvant therapy, the safer route of SAM inhibitors will start to be used and better cancer treatments will follow.

 Links:

https://pipelinereview.com/index.php/2021040977858/Small-Molecules/Celcuity-Announces-Worldwide-Licensing-Agreement-with-Pfizer-to-Develop-and-Commercialize-Gedatolisib-a-First-in-Class-PI3K/mTOR-Inhibitor-for-Breast-Cancer.html

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-04-inhibiting-production-key-material-biosynthesis.html