EGF receptor stimulation shifts breast cancer cell glucose metabolism toward glycolytic flux through PI3 kinase signaling.

Breast cancers that express epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptors (EGFRs) are associated with poor prognosis. Our group recently showed in breast cancer patients that EGFR expression is strongly correlated with high tumor uptake of the glucose analogue, 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG). Here, we explored the cellular mechanism and signaling pathways that can explain the relation between EGFR and breast cancer cell glucose metabolism. FDG uptake, lactate production and hexokinase (HK) activity were measured, and proliferation assays and western blots were performed. EGF stimulated an increase of FDG uptake in EGFR-positive T47D and MDA-MB-468 cells, but not in MCF-7 cells. In T47D cells, the effect was dose-dependent and was accompanied by increased lactate production, indicating a shift toward glycolytic flux. This metabolic response occurred through enhanced HK activity and upregulated glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1) expression. EGFR stimulation also increased T47D cell proliferation. Blocking EGFR activation with BIBX1382 or gefitinib completely abolished both FDG uptake and proliferation effects. EGFR stimulation induced MAP kinase (MAPK) and PI3 kinase (PI3K) activation. Increased cell proliferation by EGFR stimulation was completely abolished by MAPK inhibition with PD98059 or by PI3K inhibition with LY294002. Increased FDG uptake was also completely abrogated by PI3K inhibition but was uninfluenced by MAPK inhibition. These findings suggest that the association between breast tumor EGFR expression and high FDG uptake might be contributed by stimulation of the PI3K pathway downstream of EGFR activation. This was in contrast to EGFR-mediated cell proliferation that required MAPK as well as PI3K signaling.