Cell Metab. 2017 Aug 1;26(2):301-309. doi: 10.1016/j.cmet.2017.07.001.

The Dawn of the Age of Amino Acid Sensors for the mTORC1 Pathway.

Author information

1: Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, 455 Main Street, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Broad Institute, 415 Main Street, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA.
2: Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, 455 Main Street, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Broad Institute, 415 Main Street, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA. Electronic address: sabatini@wi.mit.edu.

Abstract

The mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) is a master regulator of cell growth that responds to a diverse set of environmental inputs, including amino acids. Over the past 10 years, a number of proteins have been identified that help transmit amino acid availability to mTORC1. However, amino acid sensors for this pathway have only recently been discovered. Here, we review these recent advances and highlight the variety of unexplored questions that emerge from the identification of these sensors.