NUAK Family SNF1 Like Kinase 2 (NUAK2)

NUAK2, which resides at 1q32, is a member of the SNF1/AMP kinase (AMPK) family (serine/threonine kinases) that is regulated by the putative tumor suppressor LKB1 (20–23) and also by death receptor signaling through NF-κB. AMP-related kinases function as critical sensors coupling cellular energy status to cell growth and proliferation by modulating the cell-cycle machinery and, when deregulated, result in cancer development and tumor progression in several cancers of different cell lineages. In melanomas, the LKB1–AMPK signaling pathway is deregulated by oncogenic B-RAF and participates in cancer development. However, the exact mechanisms by which AMP-related kinases participate in cancer development and tumor progression remain unknown.