Burning lactic acid: a road to revitalizing antitumor immunity.
10.1007/s11684-025-1126-6
- Author:
Jingwei MA
1
;
Liang TANG
2
;
Jingxuan XIAO
3
;
Ke TANG
4
;
Huafeng ZHANG
5
;
Bo HUANG
6
Author Information
1. Department of Immunology, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science & Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China. majingwei@hust.edu.cn.
2. Department of Immunology & State Key Laboratory of Common Mechanism Research for Major Diseases, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100005, China.
3. Department of Immunology, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science & Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China.
4. Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science & Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China.
5. Department of Pathology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China.
6. Department of Immunology & State Key Laboratory of Common Mechanism Research for Major Diseases, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100005, China. tjhuangbo@hotmail.com.
- Publication Type:Review
- Keywords:
lactic acid;
metabolism;
tumor immunotherapy
- MeSH:
Humans;
Tumor Microenvironment/immunology*;
Neoplasms/therapy*;
Lactic Acid/immunology*;
Mitochondria/metabolism*;
Animals;
Signal Transduction
- From:
Frontiers of Medicine
2025;19(3):456-473
- CountryChina
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Lactic acid (LA) accumulation in tumor microenvironments (TME) has been implicated in immune suppression and tumor progress. Diverse roles of LA have been elucidated, including microenvironmental pH regulation, signal transduction, post-translational modification, and metabolic remodeling. This review summarizes LA functions within TME, focusing on the effects on tumor cells, immune cells, and stromal cells. Reducing LA levels is a potential strategy to attack cancer, which inevitably affects the physiological functions of normal tissues. Alternatively, transporting LA into the mitochondria as an energy source for immune cells is intriguing. We underscore the significance of LA in both tumor biology and immunology, proposing the burning of LA as a potential therapeutic approach to enhance antitumor immune responses.
