Sorting nexin 10 controls mTOR activation through regulating amino-acid metabolism in colorectal cancer

Amino-acid metabolism plays a vital role in mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling, which is the pivot in colorectal cancer (CRC). Upregulated chaperone-mediated autophagy (CMA) activity contributes to the regulation of metabolism in cancer cells. Previously, we found that sorting nexin 10 (SNX10) is a critical regulator in CMA activation. Here we investigated the role of SNX10 in regulating amino-acid metabolism and mTOR signaling pathway activation, as well as the impact on the tumor progression of mouse CRC. Our results showed that SNX10 deficiency promoted colorectal tumorigenesis in male FVB mice and CRC cell proliferation and survival. Metabolic pathway analysis of gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) data revealed unique changes of amino-acid metabolism by SNX10 deficiency. In HCT116 cells, SNX10 knockout resulted in the increase of CMA and mTOR activation, which could be abolished by chloroquine treatment or reversed by SNX10 overexpression. By small RNA interference (siRNA), we found that the activation of mTOR was dependent on lysosomal-associated membrane protein type-2A (LAMP-2A), which is a limiting factor of CMA. Similar results were also found in Caco-2 and SW480 cells. Ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography–quadrupole time of flight (UHPLC-QTOF) and GC-MS-based untargeted metabolomics revealed that 10 amino-acid metabolism in SNX10-deficient cells were significantly upregulated, which could be restored by LAMP-2A siRNA. All of these amino acids were previously reported to be involved in mTOR activation. In conclusion, this work revealed that SNX10 controls mTOR activation through regulating CMA-dependent amino-acid metabolism, which provides potential target and strategy for treating CRC.