title: The LKB1/AMPK polarity pathway.
abstract: The LKB1 tumor suppressor kinase is an activator of the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), a metabolic gauge that responds to variations of cellular energetic levels by favoring catabolic versus anabolic processes. Recent studies have provided substantial evidence that LKB1 and AMPK control cell polarity from invertebrates to mammals. This review examines how the LKB1-AMPK pathway, in conjunction with other positional signals, converts energy-sensing information into the activation of Myosin II to maintain epithelial-cell architecture but also to complete cell division. This molecular link between polarity and metabolism may constitute an ancient stress-response protective mechanism that was co-opted for tumor suppression during evolution.
authors.affiliation: GReD Laboratory, CNRS UMR 6247, INSERM U931, Clermont Université, Faculté de Médecine, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France. Vincent.Mirouse@u-clermont1.fr
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Mirouse
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Billaud
mesh_terms: D055372:AMP-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D016764:Cell Polarity; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology / Q000473:pathology; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; D055372:AMP-Activated Protein Kinases