title: Potential targets for prevention of colorectal cancer: a focus on PI3K/Akt/mTOR and Wnt pathways.
abstract: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers in many parts of the world. Its development is a multi-step process involving three distinct stages, initiation that alters the molecular message of a normal cell, followed by promotion and progression that ultimately generates a phenotypically altered transformed malignant cell. Reports have suggested an association of the phosphoinositide-3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway with colon tumorigenesis. Activation of Akt signaling and impaired expression of phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) (a negative regulator of Akt) has been reported in 60-70% of human colon cancers and inhibitors of PI3K/Akt signaling have been suggested as potential therapeutic agents. Around 80% of human colon tumors possess mutations in the APC gene and half of the remainder feature β-catenin gene mutations which affect downstream signaling of the PI3K/Akt pathway. In recent years, there has been a great focus in targeting these signaling pathways, with natural and synthetic drugs reducing the tumor burden in different experiment models. In this review we survey the role of PI3K/Akt/mTOR and Wnt signaling in CRC.
authors.affiliation: Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute, Oakland, CA, USA. panduashokkumar@gmail.com
authors.forename: Ashok Kumar
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Pandurangan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D000081082:Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects*; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000378:metabolism; D060449:Wnt Signaling Pathway / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; D000081082:Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases