ErbB2 promotes breast cancer metastatic potential via HSF1/LDHA axis-mediated glycolysis

ErbB2 is overexpressed in approximately 25% of breast cancer cases and promotes metastatic potential. We previously reported that ErbB2 promoted glycolysis via heat shock factor 1 (HSF1)/lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA) axis and ErbB2-mediated glycolysis was required for the growth of breast cancer cells. However, the importance of HSF1/LDHA axis-mediated glycolysis in ErbB2-enhanced metastatic potential remains to be elucidated. In this study, we investigated the effect of HSF1/LDHA axis-mediated glycolysis on migration and invasion in breast cancer cells. Firstly, we demonstrated that ErbB2-mediated migration and invasion were dependent on glycolysis in breast cancer cells. Secondly, we found that HSF1/LDHA axis played an important role in glycolysis, which contributed to ErbB2-enhanced migration and invasion. Finally, we showed that ErbB2 was positively correlated with HSF1/LDHA axis in invasive breast cancer patients via GEO analysis. Taken together, ErbB2 promoted metastatic potential of breast cancer cells via HSF1/LDHA axis-mediated glycolysis. And our findings indicated that targeting HSF1/LDHA axis may be a promising strategy to treat ErbB2-overexpressing breast cancer patients.