Could metabolism be key to attacking cancer?
You can\u2019t attack cancer from every angle without targeting its metabolism. \n\nAs Dr. Heather Christofk puts it, \u201ccancer cells have a very different metabolism in general than most of their normal cell counterparts, and that is because most normal cells that are not dividing mainly want to use their nutrients to acquire energy. But most cancer cells want to use the nutrients they take up to build things. They use them to build more DNA and protein and lipids in order to grow and divide.\n\n\u201cIf we could come up with a way to block this altered metabolism found in cancer, we would be able to reduce the growth of the tumor, because this is fundamental\u2014there\u2019s no other way for the tumors to grow.\n\n\u201cThe challenge is finding the processes that are required for the tumor but not for normal tissues.\u201d\n\nHeather Christofk, PhD, is Associate Professor of biological chemistry at UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.\n\n3:12 \u2013 Why is cell metabolism important? \n\n6:30 \u2013 How is cell metabolism different in cancer cells?\n\n8:15 \u2013 Are the changes to cell metabolism that occur as cancer progresses a side effect of cancer, or are they helping to cause tumor growth? \n\n10:45 \u2013 Could targeting cell metabolism help block tumor cell growth? \n\n12:55 \u2013 How her lab is using viruses as a guide to identify new cancer metabolism targets.\n\n15:55 \u2013 A result that she\u2019s really excited about -- an enzyme involved in fructose metabolism and\u2026\n\n17:00 \u2013 \u2026why it was unexpected.\n\n18:15 \u2013 The impact of ACS on her career.\n\n22:37 \u2013 Why the next 10 years in cancer metabolism research are going to be exciting.\n\n25:00 \u2013 On why there\u2019s reason for hope and optimism for cancer patients and their loved ones.