AUTHOR=Zhao Junpeng , Jin Dandan , Huang Mengxiang , Ji Jie , Xu Xuebing , Wang Fei , Zhou Lirong , Bao Baijun , Jiang Feng , Xu Weisong , Lu Xiaomin , Xiao Mingbing TITLE=Glycolysis in the tumor microenvironment: a driver of cancer progression and a promising therapeutic target JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology VOLUME=12 YEAR=2024 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cell-and-developmental-biology/articles/10.3389/fcell.2024.1416472 DOI=10.3389/fcell.2024.1416472 ISSN=2296-634X ABSTRACT=

Even with sufficient oxygen, tumor cells use glycolysis to obtain the energy and macromolecules they require to multiply, once thought to be a characteristic of tumor cells known as the “Warburg effect”. In fact, throughout the process of carcinogenesis, immune cells and stromal cells, two major cellular constituents of the tumor microenvironment (TME), also undergo thorough metabolic reprogramming, which is typified by increased glycolysis. In this review, we provide a full-scale review of the glycolytic remodeling of several types of TME cells and show how these TME cells behave in the acidic milieu created by glucose shortage and lactate accumulation as a result of increased tumor glycolysis. Notably, we provide an overview of putative targets and inhibitors of glycolysis along with the viability of using glycolysis inhibitors in combination with immunotherapy and chemotherapy. Understanding the glycolytic situations in diverse cells within the tumor immunological milieu will aid in the creation of subsequent treatment plans.