ArticleNature communications2016
Asparagine promotes cancer cell proliferation through use as an amino acid exchange factor.
Article in Nature communications, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 323 papers.
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.
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.
Who cites it
323 citing papers in PubMed, 500 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effect ofCancer science · 2023Trial
- Circulating asparagine and short stature: A case-control study and exploratory two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis.Medicine · 2026Article
- Comparative analysis of amino acid profiles across pediatric groups stratified by asthma and IgE-dependent allergy showed differences in serum asparagine levels.Metabolomics : Official journal of the Metabolomic Society · 2026Article
- L-asparaginase reversibly suppresses CD40-mediated B cell activation and antigen-presenting function by metabolic restriction.iScience · 2026Article
- The hallmarks of protein and amino acid restriction in aging and longevity.Cell press blue · 2026Article
- N-Acetyltransferase 10 (NAT10) at the crossroads of metabolism, immunology, and cancer biology.Cancer metastasis reviews · 2026Review
- TruncatingbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Transsulfuration links aspartate-asparagine metabolism and redox homeostasis to drive tumor growth: Asparagine-driven transsulfuration bypasses the malate-aspartate shuttle to restore redox balance, revealing a metabolic vulnerability in tumor redox maintenance.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Article
- Steric stabilization-independent stealth cloak enables nanoreactors-mediated starvation therapy against refractory cancer.Nature biomedical engineering · 2026Article
- Targeting RuvBL1 disrupts mitochondrial metabolism and structure in hepatocellular carcinoma.JHEP reports : innovation in hepatology · 2026Article
- Amino Acids as Targets for Immunotherapy against Solid Tumors.Cell biochemistry and biophysics · 2026Review
- METTL1-mediated mOncogene · 2026Article
- Heavy water labeling reveals metabolic flexibility of amino acid and polyamine pathways in mammalian cells.Communications chemistry · 2026Article
- From ALL to Myeloid and NK Malignancies: Operationalizing "ASNS-Low" for L-Asparaginase Repurposing and Combination Therapy.Biomolecules · 2026Review
- Comparative study on changes in serum amino acid metabolic profiles in mice exposed to perfluorooctanoic acid and sodium ρ-perfluorous nonenoxybenzene sulfonate.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- IMP metabolic mechanisms and IMPDH targeting strategies in tumor metabolic reprogramming and therapy (Review).International journal of molecular medicine · 2026Review
- Loss of Kv8.2 in the Mouse Retina Is Associated With Altered One-Carbon Metabolism.Journal of neurochemistry · 2026Article
- Dietary sulfur amino acid restriction improves glucose homeostasis through hepatic de novo serine synthesis.Molecular metabolism · 2026Article
- Tumor metabolic adaptation induced by L-asparaginase reveals a vulnerability to PARP1/2 inhibitor in B-cell lymphomas.Nature communications · 2026Article
263 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Cellular amino acid uptake is critical for mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) activation and cell proliferation. However, the regulation of amino acid uptake is not well-understood. Here we describe a role for asparagine as an amino acid exchange factor: intracellular asparagine exchanges with extracellular amino acids. Through asparagine synthetase knockdown and altering of media asparagine concentrations, we show that intracellular asparagine levels regulate uptake of amino acids, especially serine, arginine and histidine. Through its exchange factor role, asparagine regulates mTORC1 activity and protein synthesis. In addition, we show that asparagine regulation of serine uptake influences serine metabolism and nucleotide synthesis, suggesting that asparagine is involved in coordinating protein and nucleotide synthesis. Finally, we show that maintenance of intracellular asparagine levels is critical for cancer cell growth. Collectively, our results indicate that asparagine is an important regulator of cancer cell amino acid homeostasis, anabolic metabolism and proliferation.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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 OpenQuestion graph.