Pyruvate dehydrogenase lipoamide kinase isozyme 1

As the primary regulators of a crucial step in the central metabolic pathway, the pyruvate dehydrogenase family is tightly regulated itself by a myriad of factors. PDK activity has been shown to decrease in individuals consuming a diet that is high in n-3 fatty acids; however, PDH activity remained unaffected.[9] Additionally, PDK1 is inhibited by AZD7545 and dichloroacetic acid (DCA); the mechanism was discovered to be the trifluoromethylpropanamide end of AZD7545 projecting into the lipoyl-binding pocket of PDK1. Dichloroacetic acid was found near the helix bundle in the N-terminal domain of PDK1. Bound DCA promotes local conformational changes that are communicated to both nucleotide-binding and lipoyl-binding pockets of PDK1, leading to the inactivation of kinase activity.[10]

The ubiquitous role of this gene lends itself to being involved in a variety of disease pathologies, including cancer. PDK1 mRNA expression is significantly associated with tumor progression; in fact, the presence of PDK1 can serve as a prognostic marker, indicating the level of success a patient can achieve. Specifically, this may serve as a biomarker in patients with gastric cancer. In coordination, the inhibitor dichloroacetic acid may be used in the future as a treatment option for patients with this type of cancer.[13] PDK1, as it regulates hypoxia and lactate production, is associated with a poor outcome in patients with head and neck squamous cancer.[14][15] The buildup of glycolytic metabolites may promote Hypoxia-Inducing Factor (HIF) activation, which creates a feed-forward loop for malignancy progression. As such, using HIF-1 as a metabolite to regulate PDK1 is seen as another potential therapy, either on its own or in tandem with other therapies, for this type of cancer.[16][17] In a further developed study, combined PDK1 and CHK1 inhibition was shown to be required to kill glioblastoma stem-like cells in vitro and in vivo.[18]