Lactate Contribution to the Tumor Microenvironment: Mechanisms, Effects on Immune Cells and Therapeutic Relevance.

ABSTRACT: Malignant transformation of cells leads to enhanced glucose uptake and the conversion of a larger fraction of pyruvate into lactate, even under normoxic conditions; this phenomenon of aerobic glycolysis is largely known as the Warburg effect. This metabolic reprograming serves to generate biosynthetic precursors, thus facilitating the survival of rapidly proliferating malignant cells. Extracellular lactate directs the metabolic reprograming of tumor cells, thereby serving as an additional selective pressure. Besides tumor cells, stromal cells are another source of lactate production in the tumor microenvironment, whose role in both tumor growth and the antitumor immune response is the subject of intense research. In this review, we provide an integral perspective of the relationship betwee

SUBMITTER: Romero-Garcia S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4754406 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature