title: Hypoxia, lipids, and cancer: surviving the harsh tumor microenvironment.
abstract: Solid tumors typically develop hostile microenvironments characterized by irregular vascularization and poor oxygen (O2) and nutrient supply. Whereas normal cells modulate anabolic and catabolic pathways in response to changes in nutrient availability, cancer cells exhibit unregulated growth even under nutrient scarcity. Recent studies have demonstrated that constitutive activation of growth-promoting pathways results in dependence on unsaturated fatty acids for survival under O2 deprivation. In cancer cells, this dependence represents a critical metabolic vulnerability that could be exploited therapeutically. Here we review how this dependence on unsaturated lipids is affected by the microenvironmental conditions faced by cancer cells.
authors.affiliation: Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, 456 BRB II/III, 421 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6160, USA.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ackerman
authors.affiliation: Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, 456 BRB II/III, 421 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6160, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6160, USA. Electronic address: celeste2@mail.med.upenn.edu.
authors.forename: M Celeste
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Simon
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015687:Cell Hypoxia; D004032:Diet; D059865:Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress; D006801:Humans; D008055:Lipids / Q000737:chemistry*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D059016:Tumor Microenvironment
chemical_list: D008055:Lipids
keywords: ER stress; SCD1; hypoxia; metabolism; unsaturated lipids