Seong A. Kang
Contributed to the Sabatini-lab studies that identified PRAS40 and DEPTOR, two of the cell's own mTOR inhibitors, and to the first characterisation of the mTOR inhibitor Torin1
Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, MIT · contributed to the Sabatini lab's PRAS40 and DEPTOR papers (2007–2009)
Portrait: LinkedIn
Seong Kang was part of the Whitehead Institute team in David Sabatini's lab that identified (for PRAS40, in parallel with several other groups) two of mTORC1's own endogenous brakes: PRAS40, an insulin-regulated inhibitor that binds raptor, and DEPTOR, an mTOR-binding protein that restrains both mTORC1 and mTORC2 and is selectively overexpressed in multiple myeloma.
That work helped establish that mTORC1 is held in check by a layer of dedicated inhibitory subunits — not just activated by upstream signals — a theme that has since become central to understanding how cancers reactivate mTOR signalling.
The timeline below follows Kang's contributions gathered in this Atlas.
Milestones in the Atlas
A selection, not a full bibliography: only papers that meet the Atlas inclusion criteria.
| Year | Evidence | Study |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | M | PRAS40 is an insulin-regulated inhibitor of the mTORC1 protein kinase SAN2007 Co-authors the discovery of PRAS40 as an insulin-regulated inhibitor of the mTORC1 protein kinase. |
| 2009 | M | An ATP-competitive mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitor reveals rapamycin-resistant functions of mTORC1 THO2009 Co-authors the development of an ATP-competitive mTOR inhibitor that reveals rapamycin-resistant functions of mTORC1. |
| 2009 | M | DEPTOR is an mTOR inhibitor frequently overexpressed in multiple myeloma cells and required for their survival PET2009 Co-authors the discovery of DEPTOR, an mTOR inhibitor frequently overexpressed in multiple myeloma cells and required for their survival. |
| 2010 | M | Structure of the human mTOR complex I and its implications for rapamycin inhibition YIP2010 Senior author of the cryo-EM structure of human mTORC1, a dimer that FKBP12-rapamycin dismantles in vitro while Torin1 leaves it intact. |
| 2011 | M | The mTOR-regulated phosphoproteome reveals a mechanism of mTORC1-mediated inhibition of growth factor signaling HSU2011 mTOR-dependent phosphoproteomics reveal Grb10 as a substrate mediating feedback inhibition of PI3K. |
| 2011 | M | mTOR complex 1 regulates lipin 1 localization to control the SREBP pathway PET2011 mTORC1 controls lipin-1 nuclear localization to regulate SREBP and lipid synthesis. |
| 2013 | M | mTORC1 phosphorylation sites encode their sensitivity to starvation and rapamycin KAN2013 First author of the study showing that each mTORC1 phosphorylation site has its own intrinsic substrate quality, which sets how sensitive it is to rapamycin and starvation. |
Co-authors in the Atlas 15
People with a profile here who share at least one study with Seong A. Kang.
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- David M. Sabatini 7 shared studies Identified mTOR (as RAFT1) in 1994. His lab then mapped much of the machinery around it: raptor and rictor at the core of mTORC1 and mTORC2, the Rag–Ragulator system that docks mTORC1 on the lysosome, and the sensors that detect leucine, arginine and SAM
- Timothy R. Peterson 4 shared studies Discovered DEPTOR, an inhibitor that binds mTOR in both complexes and is overexpressed in some multiple myelomas. He also showed that mTORC1 controls fat synthesis by regulating where the enzyme lipin 1 sits in the cell, and through it the SREBP pathway
- Carson C. Thoreen 3 shared studies Used Torin1, one of the first ATP-competitive mTOR inhibitors, to reveal functions of mTORC1 that rapamycin cannot block. He then showed that mTORC1 controls translation of mRNAs for the protein-making machinery mainly through the 4E-BP proteins
- Nathanael S. Gray 3 shared studies Medicinal chemist whose lab designed Torin1, an ATP-competitive mTOR inhibitor that blocks functions of mTORC1 that rapamycin misses. His lab is also known for covalent kinase inhibitors and targeted protein degraders
- Michael B. Yaffe 2 shared studies Cancer biologist and physician-scientist known for working out how phosphorylation creates binding sites on proteins, including the 14-3-3 family of phosphoserine/threonine-binding proteins, and how kinases choose their targets.
- Yasemin Sancak 2 shared studies Showed as a Sabatini-lab graduate student, in parallel with Kun-Liang Guan's lab, that the Rag GTPases relay amino-acid signals to mTORC1, and that Ragulator anchors them to the lysosome where mTORC1 is switched on. She also identified PRAS40 as an insulin-regulated inhibitor of mTORC1
- Benjamin E. Turk Kinase biochemist who studies how protein kinases choose their substrates; co-author on the discovery that AMPK phosphorylates raptor and on the study showing that mTORC1 sites differ in intrinsic substrate quality.
- Calvin K. Yip Structural biologist who uses electron microscopy to study large protein machines; as a postdoc at Harvard Medical School he determined a cryo-EM structure of human mTORC1, and his lab now studies the autophagy machinery.
- David A. Guertin Built the mouse genetics that defined mTORC2's biological roles
- Kathleen Ottina Researcher in David Sabatini's lab at the Whitehead Institute and HHMI at MIT who contributed to studies of the GATOR1 amino acid off-switch, mTORC1 feedback on growth-factor signalling, and cancer drug resistance
- Mathieu Laplante Co-wrote with David Sabatini one of the field's most cited reviews of mTOR in growth and disease, and his Laval lab studies how mTORC1 and DEPTOR control fat tissue and metabolism
- Peggy P. Hsu Identified, in parallel with Yonghao Yu's group, Grb10 as an mTORC1 substrate that feeds back to dampen insulin and growth-factor signalling, and now studies the earliest steps of lung cancer as a physician-scientist
- Qingsong Liu Medicinal chemist in Nathanael Gray's lab who helped discover Torin1, an ATP-competitive mTOR inhibitor, and later built an independent kinase-inhibitor drug-discovery program in China
- Robert A Lindquist Researcher in David Sabatini's group at the Whitehead Institute who ran large image-based RNAi screens for regulators of TORC1 signaling and helped build the CellProfiler image-analysis software
- W. Michael Kuehl Physician-scientist who spent decades working out the genetic and molecular biology of multiple myeloma and its precursor condition MGUS.
Every researcher with a profile →
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