Lack of coordinated regulation of lipogenic enzymes in a human breast cell line, SKBr3.

A human breast cell line has been identified which contains prodigious levels of fatty acid synthetase but has a very low capacity for lipogenesis from glucose, lactate or acetate. The fatty acid synthetase from this cell line appears to be structurally and functionally normal, and the low lipogenic capacity of the cells appears to be due to the low activities of other lipogenic enzymes, notably acetyl-CoA carboxylase. Thus, the SKBr3 cell line appears to lack the long-term coordinated control of acetyl-CoA carboxylase and fatty acid synthetase commonly observed in normal lipogenic tissues.