Kynurenine produced by tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase metabolism promotes glioma progression through an aryl hydrocarbon receptor-dependent signaling pathway

The current studies associated with tumor biology continue to describe a high correlation between tryptophan (Trp) metabolism and tumor progression. These findings reflect the complex underlying mechanism of tumor development and highlight the need to explore additional drug targets for carcinoma-associated diseases. In our study, we reported that elevated Trp metabolism was observed in highly malignant glioma tumor tissues from patients. The elevated Trp metabolism in glioma cells were induced by the overexpression of Trp 2,3-dioxygenase 2 (TDO2), which further contributed to the production of the metabolite kynurenine (Kyn). Subsequently, the Kyn derived from Trp metabolism was able to mediate the activation of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) and downstream PI3K/AKT signals, resulting in the strengthening of tumor stemness and growth. Meanwhile, the activation of the AhR could promote the process of epithelial-mesenchymal transition in gliomas through a TGF-beta-dependent mechanism, leading to enhanced tumor invasion in vitro and in vivo. Inhibition of the AhR using StemRegenin 1 was demonstrated to suppress glioma growth and improve the outcome of traditional chemotherapy in subcutaneous tumor-bearing mice, representing a promising therapeutic target for clinical glioma treatment.