Cancer As A Metabolic Disease. For researchers and those interested in what goes on at the cellular level in cancer cells this is an interesting and useful reference paper. The path from normal cell physiology to malignant behavior, where all major cancer hallmarks are expressed is quite complex. Respiratory insufficiency together with lactate production are some of the key features of tumor cell energy metabolism. A deficiency in some aspect of respiration can account for excessive lactic acid production which is typical in tumor cells. One theory is that mitochondrial respiratory dysfunction is the origin of cancer. Tumor cells can have abnormalities in both the content and composition of their mitochondria. When viewed as a mitochondrial metabolic disease cancer progression is more in line with the evolutionary theory of Lamarck than with the theory of Darwin. According to Lamarck’s theory, it is the environment that produces changes in biological structures. Lamarck’s ideas could also accommodate a dominant role for epigenetics and horizontal gene transfer as factors that could facilitate tumor progression. Many cancers are infected with human cytomegalovirus, which acts as an oncomodulator of tumor progression. Products of the virus can damage mitochondria in the infected tumor cells, thus contributing to a further dependence on glucose and glutamine for energy metabolism.
Posted on: Sat, 11 Oct 2014 02:22:47 +0000
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