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  • Vitamin B6 is governed by the local compartmentalization of metabolic enzymes during growth.

Vitamin B6 is governed by the local compartmentalization of metabolic enzymes during growth.

Science advances (2023-09-08)
Carolina N Franco, Laurence J Seabrook, Steven T Nguyen, Ying Yang, Melissa Campos, Qi Fan, Andrew C Cicchetto, Mei Kong, Heather R Christofk, Lauren V Albrecht
ABSTRACT

Vitamin B6 is a vital micronutrient across cell types and tissues, and dysregulated B6 levels contribute to human disease. Despite its importance, how B6 vitamer levels are regulated is not well understood. Here, we provide evidence that B6 dynamics are rapidly tuned by precise compartmentation of pyridoxal kinase (PDXK), the rate-limiting B6 enzyme. We show that canonical Wnt rapidly led to the accumulation of inactive B6 by shunting cytosolic PDXK into lysosomes. PDXK was modified with methyl-arginine Degron (MrDegron), a protein tag for lysosomes, which enabled delivery via microautophagy. Hyperactive lysosomes resulted in the continuous degradation of PDXK and B6 deficiency that promoted proliferation in Wnt-driven colorectal cancer (CRC) cells. Pharmacological or genetic disruption of the coordinated MrDegron proteolytic pathway was sufficient to reduce CRC survival in cells and organoid models. In sum, this work contributes to the repertoire of micronutrient-regulated processes that enable cancer cell growth and provides insight into the functional impact of B6 deficiencies for survival.

MATERIALS
Product Number
Brand
Product Description

Sigma-Aldrich
Cycloheximide, Biotechnology Performance Certified
Sigma-Aldrich
IWP-2, ≥98% (HPLC)
Sigma-Aldrich
Anti-PDXK antibody produced in rabbit, Prestige Antibodies® Powered by Atlas Antibodies, affinity isolated antibody, buffered aqueous glycerol solution
Sigma-Aldrich
Chloroquine diphosphate salt, powder or crystals, 98.5-101.0% (EP)
Sigma-Aldrich
MS023 hydrochloride, ≥98% (HPLC)
Sigma-Aldrich
Pyridoxine, ≥98%