NUAK1 and melanoma: Indeed, AMPK has been shown to be required for the survival of melanoma cells downstream of MYC, and depletion of AMPK-related kinase 1 (ARK5 or NUAK1) improves survival of mice with MYC-induced liver tumours.102 Evaluating AMPK activation in mouse tumour models demonstrated its heterogeneous intra-tumour distribution overlapping with hypoxic regions,103 supporting its role in promoting cancer cell survival in nutrient-depleted conditions.104,105