HK2 Articles

Prostate cancer ranks as the second most lethal malignancy in the Western world. Previous targeting of prostate-specific antigen and human kallikrein-related peptidase 2, two related enzymes abundantly expressed in prostatic malignancies, with radioimmunoconjugates intended for diagnostic purposes, have proven successful in rodent prostate cancer (PCa) models.

Aerobic glycolysis, known as the Warburg effect, is one of the hallmarks of cancer cells. We recently reported that the hexokinase 2 (HK2)-mediated Warburg effect is required for castration-resistant prostate cancer that is driven by Pten/p53 deficiency, suggesting that HK2 might be a therapeutic target for prostate cancer patients carrying PTEN and p53 mutations.