New discovery subverts a century-old model of cancer metabolism

Science and Technology Daily, Beijing, April 7 (intern reporter Zhang Jiaxin) In the past, it was believed that tumor cells consume glucose at a high rate for metabolism, but a new discovery by researchers from Vanderbilt University in the United States published in the journal Nature on the 7th showed that: Tumor cells themselves are not the culprit.

The usual positron emission tomography (PET) uses a glucose radiotracer (FDG) to "light up" cancer cells based on their glucose metabolism.

The researchers also found that the difference in glucose and glutamine intake was not caused by nutrient restriction, but by specific cell signaling pathways.

"It has always been thought that cancer cells have swallowed all the glucose, and therefore immune cells cannot get enough glucose to complete their work.

Researchers said that understanding how cells in the tumor microenvironment use different nutrients is expected to promote the research of new therapies or imaging methods that specifically target specific types of tumor cells.