Molecular Alterations of PI3K/Akt/mTOR Pathway: A Therapeutic Target in Endometrial Cancer

Figure 1

Schematic representation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway substrates and associated cellular functions. The tumor suppressor protein/lipid PTEN negatively regulates AKT. Following activation, Akt translocates into the cytoplasm and nucleus and phosphorylates TSC2. mTORC1 (mTOR + raptor) and mTORC2 (mTOR + rictor) are two distinct branches of the mTOR pathway. mTORC1 responds to nutrients and growth factors and is regulated by TSC1/2 and Rheb, whereas it is unknown how the mTORC2 complex is regulated. The raptor-mTOR pathway regulates cell growth while rictor-mTOR regulates Akt/PKB to control cell survival, proliferation, and cytoskeleton.