AMPK: The energy sensor at the crossroads of aging and cancer.
Abstract
AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a protein kinase that plays versatile roles in response to a variety of physiological stresses, including glucose deprivation, hypoxia, and ischemia. As a kinase with pleiotropic functions, it plays a complex role in tumor progression, exhibiting both tumor-promoting and tumor-suppressing activities. On one hand, AMPK enhances cancer cell proliferation and survival, promotes cancer metastasis, and impairs anti-tumor immunity. On the other hand, AMPK inhibits cancer cell growth and survival and stimulates immune responses in a context-dependent manner. Apart from these functions, AMPK plays a key role in orchestrating aging and aging-related disorders, including cardiovascular diseases (CVD), Osteoarthritis (OA), and Diabetes. In this review article, we summarized the functions of AMPK pathway based on its oncogenic and tumor-suppressive roles and highlighted the importance of AMPK pathway in regulating cellular aging. We also spotlighted the significant role of various signaling pathways, activators, and inhibitors of AMPK in serving as therapeutic strategies for anti-cancer and anti-aging therapy.
The following analysis is generated by AI and may contain errors. It is separate from the authors’ abstract and is not peer review.
Research summary
The paper discusses the role of AMPK in aging and aging-related disorders, which aligns with longevity research. However, while it highlights the dual roles of AMPK in cancer and aging, it primarily focuses on the mechanisms rather than addressing root causes of aging or proposing novel therapeutic strategies that could significantly alter aging processes. Thus, it presents solid research but with limited impact on the field of longevity.
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