Research progress of dCTP pyrophosphatase 1 regulating nucleotide metabolism and phenotype of tumor cells

Deoxycytidine triphosphate pyrophosphatase 1(dCTP pyrophosphatase 1, DCTPP1) is a newly discovered pyrophosphatase targeting deoxycytidine triphosphate (dCTP). It regulates cytosine metabolism by not only hydrolyzing conventional and modified dCTP, but also participating in the steady-state regulation of other pyrimidine nucleotides. In the process of tumor cells, the high expression of DCTPP1 is facilitate to stabilize the balance of deoxynucleoside triphosphate pool (dNTP pool),methylation of the genome, and maintainance of stability of the tumor cell genome. Besides, DCTPP1 promotes malignant phenotypes such as tumor cell proliferation and metastasis through different signal pathways, and it is related to tumor drug resistance and poor clinical prognosis. DCTPP1 may become a “star” target for the development of anti-tumor drugs. In-depth research on its regulatory mechanism is expected to provide a new strategy for the development of targeted inhibitors of tumor nucleotide metabolism.