Targeting sterol-O-acyltransferase 1 to disrupt cholesterol metabolism for cancer therapy

Teng Tu; Hongying Zhang; Huanji Xu

doi:10.3389/fonc.2023.1197502

Targeting sterol-O-acyltransferase 1 to disrupt cholesterol metabolism for cancer therapy

Front Oncol. 2023 Jun 20:13:1197502. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1197502. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Teng Tu¹, Hongying Zhang², Huanji Xu¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Center and Laboratory of Molecular Targeted Therapy in Oncology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
² Laboratory of Oncogene, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.

Abstract

Cholesterol esterification is often dysregulated in cancer. Sterol O-acyl-transferase 1 (SOAT1) plays an important role in maintaining cellular cholesterol homeostasis by catalyzing the formation of cholesterol esters from cholesterol and long-chain fatty acids in cells. Many studies have implicated that SOAT1 plays a vital role in cancer initiation and progression and is an attractive target for novel anticancer therapy. In this review, we provide an overview of the mechanism and regulation of SOAT1 in cancer and summarize the updates of anticancer therapy targeting SOAT1.

Keywords: avasimibe; cancer therapy; cholesterol esterification; cholesterol metabolism; sterol-O-acyltransferase 1.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (82103364); the Sichuan Science and Technology Program (2022YFS0204); the Post-doctor Research Project, West China Hospital (2023HXBH127); the Postdoctoral Innovative Talents Support Program of China (BX2021203); and the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2021M702353).