Position Is Destiny: Metabolism and Cell Identity

CTNNB1, encoding β-catenin, is frequently mutated in hepatocellular carcinoma, the most rapidly growing solid cancer in the US, and activating mutations in this gene are associated with increased expression of glutamine synthetase. A new report by Adebayo Michael et al. (2019) Adebayo Michael A.O. Ko S. Tao J. Moghe A. Yang H. Xu M. Russell J.O. Pradhan-Sundd T. Liu S. Singh S. et al. Inhibiting glutamine-dependent mTORC1 activation ameliorates liver cancers driven by beta-Catenin mutations. Cell Metab. 2019; 29 ( this issue) : 1135-1150 Google Scholar identifies mTOR as a direct target of WNT/β-catenin signaling through increased production of glutamine, which is required for the carcinogenic effects of WNT/β-catenin activity in the liver