Ghomlaghi, M.; Hart, A.; Hoang, N.; Shin, S.; Nguyen, L.K. Feedback, Crosstalk and Competition: Ingredients for Emergent Non-Linear Behaviour in the PI3K/mTOR Signalling Network. Int. J. Mol. Sci.2021, 22, 6944.
Ghomlaghi, M.; Hart, A.; Hoang, N.; Shin, S.; Nguyen, L.K. Feedback, Crosstalk and Competition: Ingredients for Emergent Non-Linear Behaviour in the PI3K/mTOR Signalling Network. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22, 6944.
Abstract
The PI3K/mTOR signalling pathway plays a central role in the governing of cell growth, survival and metabolism. As such, it must integrate and decode information from both external and internal sources to guide efficient decision-making by the cell. To facilitate this, the pathway have evolved an intricate web of complex regulatory mechanisms and elaborate crosstalk with neighbouring signalling pathways, making it a highly non-linear system. Here, we describe the mechanistic biological details that underpin these regulatory mechanisms, covering a multitude of negative and positive feedback loops, feed-forward loops, competing protein interactions, and crosstalk with major signalling pathways. Further, we highlight the non-linear and dynamic network behaviours that arise from these regulations, uncovered through both computational and experimental studies. Given the pivotal role of the PI3K/mTOR network in cellular homeostasis and its frequent dysregulation in pathologies including cancer and diabetes, a coherent and systems-level understanding of the complex regulation and consequential dynamic signalling behaviours within this network is imperative for advancing biology and development of new therapeutic approaches.
Keywords
PI3K/mTOR signalling; feedback loop; crosstalk; nonlinear dynamics; cancer
Subject
LIFE SCIENCES, Biochemistry
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
