TKT and cancer: The aberrant activation of Nrf2 in cancer cells leads to increased expression of Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), transketolase (TKT), 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (PGD), and other metabolic enzymes promoting glutamine and glucose metabolism in pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) and increasing synthesis of amino acids participating in metabolic reprogramming required for cell proliferation (Mitsuishi et al. 2012).