Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 9, 2026

Assessment of the Metabolic Profile of Primary Leukemia Cells
Published on: November 21, 2018
The metabolic switch and its regulation in cancer cells
ShengTao Zhou1, CanHua Huang, YuQuan Wei
1State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Abstract:
The primary features of cancer are maintained via intrinsically modified metabolic activity, which is characterized by enhanced nutrient supply, energy production, and biosynthetic activity to synthesize a variety of macromolecular components during each passage through the cell cycle. This metabolic shift in transformed cells, as compared with non-proliferating cells, involves aberrant activation of aerobic glycolysis, de novo lipid biosynthesis and glutamine-dependent anaplerosis to fuel robust cell growth and proliferation. Here, we discuss the unique metabolic characteristics of cancer, the constitutive regulation of metabolism through a variety of signal transduction pathways and/or enzymes involved in metabolic reprogramming in cancer cells, and their implications in cancer diagnosis and therapy.
Related Concept Videos
Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells
Some of the advantages that cancer cells have on normal cells include - enhanced ability to divide without terminally differentiating, induce new blood vessel formation,...
Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells
Some of the advantages that cancer cells have on normal cells include - enhanced ability to divide without terminally differentiating, induce new blood vessel formation,...
mTOR Signaling and Cancer Progression
The mTOR pathway or the...
mTOR Signaling and Cancer Progression
The mTOR pathway or the...
Regulation of Metabolism
Epigenetic Regulation
X-chromosome...