The Target of Rapamycin: Structure and Functions

Immunopharmacological Drugs

“…Mammalian Target of Rapamycin Inhibitor (mTOR) is a widely expressed protein kinase that is centrally involved in control of cell growth, proliferation, angiogenesis, differentiation, and cell-cycle regulation [102][103][104][105][106]. The mTOR inhibitors work as immunosuppressants blocking cell proliferation by preventing the binding of growth factors to their receptors in the cell, which in the case of lymphocytes is IL-2.…”

The mTOR Complexes in Cancer Cell Metabolism

“…On the other hand, mTORC2, but not mTORC1, can phosphorylate AKT, and this phosphorylation which leads to optimal activation of AKT, is not acutely sensitive to rapamycin [64,130]. Although AKT phosphorylation at its conserved hydrophobic motif site is used as a hallmark of mTORC2 activity, other direct substrates of mTORC2, such as SGK and PKC, are emerging from recent studies [164]. mTORC2 has also been linked to other cellular functions, such as actin cytoskeleton reorganization, translation, and protein maturation/folding [111].…”

“…2.1b). In addition to these conserved partners, the mTORCs also associate with other distinct, less well-conserved proteins that could regulate its activity and function [164]. The well-characterized function of mTOR in regulating the translation regulators S6K1 and 4E-BP1 is mediated by mTORC1.…”