Targeting respiratory complex I to prevent the Warburg effect.

Abstract

In the last 10 years, studies of energetic metabolism in different tumors clearly indicate that the definition of Warburg effect, i.e. the glycolytic shift cells undergo upon transformation, ought to be revisited considering the metabolic plasticity of cancer cells. In fact, recent findings show that the shift from glycolysis to re-established oxidative metabolism is required for certain steps of tumor progression, suggesting that mitochondrial function and, in particular, respiratory complex I are crucial for metabolic and hypoxic adaptation. Based on these evidences, complex I can be considered a lethality target for potential anticancer strategies. In conclusion, in this mini review we summarize and discuss why it is not paradoxical to develop pharmacological and genome editing approaches to target complex I as novel adjuvant therapies for cancer treatment. This article is part of a Directed Issue entitled: Energy Metabolism Disorders and Therapies.

• Authors: Renaud Vatrinet, Luisa Iommarini, Ivana Kurelac, Monica De Luise, Giuseppe Gasparre, Anna Maria Porcelli
• Journal: The international journal of biochemistry & cell biology (Int J Biochem Cell Biol) Vol. 63 Pg. 41-5 (Jun 2015) ISSN: 1878-5875 [Electronic] Netherlands
• PMID: 25668477 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Review)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Chemical References

• Antineoplastic Agents
• Reactive Oxygen Species
• Electron Transport Complex I

Topics

• Antineoplastic Agents (therapeutic use)
• Cell Transformation, Neoplastic (genetics, metabolism)
• Electron Transport Complex I (antagonists & inhibitors, genetics, metabolism)
• Energy Metabolism
• Glycolysis (drug effects)
• Humans
• Mitochondria (genetics, metabolism)
• Neoplasms (drug therapy, genetics, metabolism)
• Oxidative Phosphorylation
• Reactive Oxygen Species (metabolism)