AKT3 is a key regulator of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

• Published in: Cancer science 2021-06, Vol.112 (6), p.2325-2334
• Main Authors: Takahashi, Hideyuki, Rokudai, Susumu, Kawabata‐Iwakawa, Reika, Sakakura, Koichi, Oyama, Tetsunari, Nishiyama, Masahiko, Chikamatsu, Kazuaki
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 1-Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase; AKT; AKT protein; Angiogenesis; Apoptosis; Binding sites; Cancer; Cell cycle; Cell growth; Cell proliferation; Comparative analysis; Development and progression; Flow cytometry; Gene expression; Genes; Genetic aspects; Genomes; Genomics; Head & neck cancer; Head and neck carcinoma; head and neck squamous cell carcinoma; Health aspects; Human papillomavirus; Immunohistochemistry; Immunosuppression; Isoforms; Kinases; Medical prognosis; Metastases; Microenvironments; Mutation; Original; Penicillin; Physiological aspects; PIK3CA; Prognosis; Rapamycin; RNA; RNA sequencing; Signal transduction; Software; Squamous cell carcinoma; TOR protein; Tumor cells; tumor microenvironment
• ISSN: 1347-9032; 1349-7006
• DOI: 10.1111/cas.14911

The phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase (PI3K)/AKT/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway plays a vital role in cell proliferation, apoptosis, metabolism, and angiogenesis in various human cancers, including head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). In the present study, we aimed to clarify the role of AKT, which is a major downstream effector of the PI3K‐AKT‐mTOR pathway, in HNSCC. We first investigated the mRNA expression of AKT isoforms using RNA‐sequencing data from The Cancer Genome Atlas database. We observed a specific elevation of AKT3 expression in HNSCC tissues when compared with that in normal tissues. Furthermore, AKT3 expression correlated with genes related to the immunosuppressive microenvironment more than the other AKT isoforms and PIK3CA. Accordingly, we focused on AKT3 and performed a knockdown approach using an HNSCC cell line. AKT3 knockdown cells exhibited impaired proliferation, a shift in the cell cycle from G2/M to G1/G0 phase, an increase in apoptotic cells, and downregulation of gene expression related to immunosuppression, as well as the knockdown of its upstream regulator PIK3CA. We also performed immunohistochemistry for both AKT3 and PIK3CA using surgical specimens from 72 patients with HNSCC. AKT3 expression in tumor cells correlated with immune cell infiltration and unfavorable prognosis when compared with PIK3CA. These findings suggested that AKT3 expression is a potential biomarker for predicting the immunoreactivity and prognosis of HNSCC. Furthermore, the isoform‐specific inhibition of AKT3 could be developed as a novel cancer therapy that efficiently suppresses the PI3K‐AKT‐mTOR pathway. This research work demonstrated that AKT3 is a key regulator that modulates the proliferative and immunosuppressive functions of HNSCC. AKT3 is a potential candidate for a novel biomarker of the immunosuppressive microenvironment and shorter survival. The isoform‐specific inhibition of AKT3 could be developed as a novel cancer therapy that efficiently suppresses the PI3K‐AKT‐mTOR pathway.