Cited by 134Cancer, Hypoxia, and MetabolismCancer, Lipids, and MetabolismCancer Cells and Metastasis

Hypoxia Dictates Metabolic Rewiring of Tumors: Implications for Chemoresistance

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Belisario, Dimas Carolina, Kopecka, Joanna, Pasino, Martina, Akman, Muhlis, De Smaele, Enrico, Donadelli, Massimo, Riganti, Chiara·2020·Cells

Abstract

Hypoxia is a condition commonly observed in the core of solid tumors. The hypoxia-inducible factors (HIF) act as hypoxia sensors that orchestrate a coordinated response increasing the pro-survival and pro-invasive phenotype of cancer cells, and determine a broad metabolic rewiring. These events favor tumor progression and chemoresistance. The increase in glucose and amino acid uptake, glycolytic flux, and lactate production; the alterations in glutamine metabolism, tricarboxylic acid cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation; the high levels of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species; the modulation of both fatty acid synthesis and oxidation are hallmarks of the metabolic rewiring induced by hypoxia. This review discusses how metabolic-dependent factors (e.g., increased acidification of tumor microenvironment coupled with intracellular alkalinization, and reduced mitochondrial metabolism), and metabolic-independent factors (e.g., increased expression of drug efflux transporters, stemness maintenance, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition) cooperate in determining chemoresistance in hypoxia. Specific metabolic modifiers, however, can reverse the metabolic phenotype of hypoxic tumor areas that are more chemoresistant into the phenotype typical of chemosensitive cells. We propose these metabolic modifiers, able to reverse the hypoxia-induced metabolic rewiring, as potential chemosensitizer agents against hypoxic and refractory tumor cells.

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Crossref · 10.3390/cells9122598

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  • In hypoxia, NRF2 activates HIF1α and an array of multidrug resistance genes (MDR1/ABCB1, MRP1/ABCC1, BCRP/ABCG2) resulting in resistance to a variety of other chemotherapeutics.

    “On the other hand, in hypoxia oxygenic stress response is activated by NRF2, which activates HIF1α, but more importantly an array of multidrug resistance genes such as MDR1/ABCB1, MRP1/ABCC1 and BCRP/ABCG2 resulting in resistance to a variety of other chemotherapeutics [59, 60].”

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Authors
Belisario, D. C., Kopecka, J., Pasino, M., Akman, M., De Smaele, E., Donadelli, M., & Riganti, C.
Affiliations
  • University of Turin (IT)
  • Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Roma, 00185 Roma, Italy
  • University of Verona (IT)
Corresponding author
Riganti, Chiara
Venue
Cells
Publisher
MDPI AG
Published
2020-12-04
Volume
9
Issue
12
Pages
2598
ISSN
2073-4409 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3109893680
Cited by
133
References
234
Citations by year
2026: 17 · 2025: 27 · 2024: 23 · 2023: 24 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 18
FWCI
1.71
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Cells (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Institutional Research Information System University of Turin (University of Turin) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • IRIS Research product catalog (Sapienza University of Rome) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
AIRC (Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro) (IG21408)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cancer Research › Cancer, Hypoxia, and Metabolism
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cancer Research › Cancer, Lipids, and Metabolism
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer Cells and Metastasis
Keywords
tumor hypoxia, metabolic reprogramming, chemoresistance, hypoxia-inducible factor, tumor microenvironment acidification, efflux pumps, cancer stemness, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, glycolysis, glutamine metabolism, oxidative phosphorylation, fatty acid metabolism, reactive oxygen species, cancer metabolism
MeSH terms
Amino Acids, Animals, Hypoxia, Citric Acid Cycle, Glucose, Glutamine, Humans, Mitochondria, Neoplasms, Oxidation-Reduction, Oxidative Phosphorylation, Oxygen, Phenotype, Reactive Oxygen Species, Disease Progression, Drug Resistance, Neoplasm, Dimerization, Lactic Acid, Mice, Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition, Tumor Microenvironment

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