Correction: Porphyrin overdrive rewires cancer cell metabolism

Abstract

Cancer cells exhibit a metabolic phenotype termed “porphyrin overdrive,” characterized by dysregulated heme metabolic pathways for intermediate accumulation. This rewiring is cancer-essential and cancer-specific. Targeting this vulnerability with a “bait-and-kill” strategy shows promise in eradicating malignant cells.

Figure S8.. Erythroid differentiation in vitro erythropoiesis assays.

The parent K562 cell line readily undergoes differentiation at 48 h post-induction in vitro. In contrast, neither the ALAS2 KO nor the FECH KO mutants show signs of differentiation (parent line versus mutants, P < 0.0001). Cell differentiation under 40 μM concentrations of hemin was assessed by staining cells with benzidine and o-dianisidine, where stained cells indicate hemoglobin accumulation and differentiation. The upper panel displays benzidine staining results for K562 WT, ALAS2 KO, and FECH KO, while the lower panel exhibits o-dianisidine staining for K562 WT. The magnified circle in the lower panel shows o-dianisidine-treated cells with varying degrees of staining.