Evidence mapPaperPMID 30655321Full record

ArticleMolecular cancer research : MCR2019

SPHK1 Is a Novel Target of Metformin in Ovarian Cancer.

Peter C Hart, Tatsuyuki Chiyoda, Xiaojing Liu, Melanie Weigert, Marion Curtis, Chun-Yi Chiang, Rachel Loth, Ricardo Lastra, Stephanie M McGregor, Jason W Locasale and 2 more

Open access · bronzeAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Molecular cancer research : MCR, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 46 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
46citing papers in PubMed
3.9field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

46 citing papers in PubMed, 73 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
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  3. Tumor-associated macrophages and platelets in tumor microenvironment and its potential therapeutic role in ovarian cancer.Clinical & translational oncology : official publication of the Federation of Spanish Oncology Societies and of the National Cancer Institute of Mexico · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.

Peter C Hart *Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.ORCID 0000-0003-1843-9102
Tatsuyuki Chiyoda *Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.ORCID 0000-0002-8214-2242
Xiaojing LiuDepartment of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina.
Melanie WeigertDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.ORCID 0000-0002-8732-1186
Marion CurtisDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
Chun-Yi ChiangDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
Rachel LothDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
Ricardo LastraDepartment of Pathology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
Stephanie M McGregorDepartment of Pathology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
Jason W LocasaleDepartment of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina.ORCID 0000-0002-7766-3502
Ernst LengyelDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
Iris L RomeroDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois. iromero@bsd.uchicago.edu.
University of Chicago · USDuke University · USKeio University · JPUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison · US

Funding

VIRAL ONCOLOGY CORE FACILITYP30CA014599 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO · 1985 to 2025
$29.5M
REPRODUCTIVE SCIENTIST TRAINING PROGRAMK12HD000849 · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SAN FRANCISCO · 1988 to 2025
$7.6M
Use of microfluidic tumor cultures to enable clinical trials of therapies for ovarian cancerP50CA136393 · MAYO CLINIC ROCHESTER · 2025 to 2025
$2.3M
NCI NIH HHS L30 CA153336NCI NIH HHS L30 CA231817NCI NIH HHS P30 CA014599NCI NIH HHS P50 CA136393NCI NIH HHS R01 CA111882NCI NIH HHS R01 CA169604NICHD NIH HHS K12 HD000849NIH HHS S10 OD018164
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The role of phospholipid signaling in ovarian cancer is poorly understood. Sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) is a bioactive metabolite of sphingosine that has been associated with tumor progression through enhanced cell proliferation and motility. Similarly, sphingosine kinases (SPHK), which catalyze the formation of S1P and thus regulate the sphingolipid rheostat, have been reported to promote tumor growth in a variety of cancers. The findings reported here show that exogenous S1P or overexpression of SPHK1 increased proliferation, migration, invasion, and stem-like phenotypes in ovarian cancer cell lines. Likewise, overexpression of SPHK1 markedly enhanced tumor growth in a xenograft model of ovarian cancer, which was associated with elevation of key markers of proliferation and stemness. The diabetes drug, metformin, has been shown to have anticancer effects. Here, we found that ovarian cancer patients taking metformin had significantly reduced serum S1P levels, a finding that was recapitulated when ovarian cancer cells were treated with metformin and analyzed by lipidomics. These findings suggested that in cancer the sphingolipid rheostat may be a novel metabolic target of metformin. In support of this, metformin blocked hypoxia-induced SPHK1, which was associated with inhibited nuclear translocation and transcriptional activity of hypoxia-inducible factors (HIF1α and HIF2α). Further, ovarian cancer cells with high SPHK1 were found to be highly sensitive to the cytotoxic effects of metformin, whereas ovarian cancer cells with low SPHK1 were resistant. Together, the findings reported here show that hypoxia-induced SPHK1 expression and downstream S1P signaling promote ovarian cancer progression and that tumors with high expression of SPHK1 or S1P levels might have increased sensitivity to the cytotoxic effects of metformin. IMPLICATIONS: Metformin targets sphingolipid metabolism through inhibiting SPHK1, thereby impeding ovarian cancer cell migration, proliferation, and self-renewal.

Indexed as

AnimalsBasic Helix-Loop-Helix ProteinsCell MovementEndothelial PAS Domain-Containing Protein 1FemaleHumansHypoglycemic AgentsHypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha SubunitLysophospholipidsMetforminMiceMice, NudeMolecular Targeted TherapyOvarian NeoplasmsPhosphotransferases (Alcohol Group Acceptor)SphingosineBasic Helix-Loop-Helix ProteinsEndothelial PAS Domain-Containing Protein 1HIF1A protein, humanHypoglycemic AgentsHypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha SubunitLysophospholipidsMetforminPhosphotransferases (Alcohol Group Acceptor)Sphingosinesphingosine 1-phosphateSphingosine Kinase

Identifiers

PMID30655321
PMCPMC6445689
OpenAlexW2910980675

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.