Figure 1.

Dual role of ataxia-telangiectasia mutated kinase (ATM) in cancer. In the nucleus, DBSs activate ATM kinase, which ensures genomic stability, acting as a tumor suppressor factor. In the cytosol, ATM acts as a stress sensor, being activated upon oxidative stress to maintain intracellular redox homeostasis. Here, ATM is responsible for protein quality control and regulates several pathways such as autophagy and organelles selective removal (mitophagy and pexophagy). All these pathways may promote or prevent tumor growth depending on the specific context; the molecular mechanisms underlying the dual function of ATM still deserve further elucidation.