Fig. 8.

GARS promotes bladder cancer cell proliferation through non-canonical function. A GARS was differentially expressed in tumors and MNUs (p value from Wilcoxon rank-sum test). B The expression levels of indicated proteins and global K-Gly in tumor tissues compared with those of adjacent normal tissues. C The pentose phosphate pathway was activated, while glycolysis was downregulated in GARS-overexpressing cells. D Global K-Gly levels in T24 and 5637 GARS-overexpressing cell lines. E Interaction between GARS and PGK1, and interaction between GARS and PKM2, in both 5637 and T24 cell lines detected by co-immunoprecipitation assays. F Interaction of GARS with PGK1 and PKM2 in the bladder cancer tumor tissues, detected by co-immunoprecipitation assays. G K-Gly levels of PGK1 and PKM2 in both 5637 and T24 GARS-overexpressing cells. H Enzymatic activities of PGK1 and PKM2 in T24 GARS-overexpressing cells. I Beta-alanine inhibits K-Gly formation. J The effect of beta-alanine and GARS on T24 cells xenografts in nude mice. K A model depicting the regulation of GARS