Transcription factor NKX2-1 drives serine and glycine synthesis addiction in cancer

Background: One-third of cancers activate endogenous synthesis of serine/glycine, and can become addicted to this pathway to sustain proliferation and survival. Mechanisms driving this metabolic rewiring remain largely unknown. Methods: NKX2–1 overexpressing and NKX2–1 knockdown/knockout T-cell leukaemia and lung cancer cell line models were established to study metabolic rewiring using ChIP-qPCR, immunoblotting, mass spectrometry, and proliferation and invasion assays. Findings and therapeutic relevance were validated in mouse models and confirmed in patient datasets. Results: Exploring T-cell leukaemia, lung cancer and neuroendocrine prostate cancer patient datasets highlighted the transcription factor NKX2–1 as putative driver of serine/glycine metabolism. We demonstrate that transcription factor NKX2–1 binds and transcriptionally upregulates serine/glycine synthesis enzyme genes, enabling NKX2–1 expressing cells to proliferate and invade in serine/glycine-depleted conditions. NKX2–1 driven serine/glycine synthesis generates nucleotides and redox molecules, and is associated with an altered cellular lipidome and methylome. Accordingly, NKX2–1 tumour-bearing mice display enhanced tumour aggressiveness associated with systemic metabolic rewiring. Therapeutically, NKX2–1-expressing cancer cells are more sensitive to serine/glycine conversion inhibition by repurposed anti-depressant sertraline, and to etoposide chemotherapy. Conclusion: Collectively, we identify NKX2–1 as a novel transcriptional regulator of serine/glycine synthesis addiction across cancers, revealing a therapeutic vulnerability of NKX2–1-driven cancers. [Figure not available: see fulltext.].