Title:Immunometabolism in the Bladder Cancer Microenvironment
Volume: 22
Issue: 12
Author(s): Mohammad Javad Fattahi, Mohammad Reza Haghshenas and Abbas Ghaderi*
Affiliation:
- School of Medicine, Shiraz Institute for Cancer Research, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
- Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
Keywords:
Immunometabolism, bladder cancer, tumor microenvironment, metabolic reprogramming, immune cell functions, targeted therapies.
Abstract: The initiation and progression of bladder cancer (BC) are dependent on its tumor
microenvironment (TME). On the other hand, cancer cells shape and train TME to support their
development, respond to treatment and migration in an organism. Immune cells exert key roles in
the BC microenvironment and have complex interactions with BC cells. These complicated
interplays result in metabolic competition in the TME, leading to nutrient deprivation, acidosis,
hypoxia and metabolite accumulation, which impair immune cell function. Recent studies have
demonstrated that immune cells functions are closely correlated with their metabolism.
Immunometabolism describes the functional metabolic alterations that take place within immune
cells and the role of these cells in directing metabolism and immune response in tissues or diseases
such as cancer. Some molecules and their metabolites in the TME, including glucose, fatty acids and
amino acids, can regulate the phenotype, function and metabolism of immune cells. Hence, here we
describe some recent advances in immunometabolism and relate them to BC progression. A
profound understanding of the metabolic reprogramming of BC cells and immune cells in the TME
will offer novel opportunities for targeted therapies in future.